Laser Digital Japan, a subsidiary backed by Nomura Securities, has received approval to operate as a crypto asset exchange service provider, becoming the first new firm to win such registration in Japan in four years.
The approval marks the first expansion of Japan's regulated crypto exchange sector since 2022, when the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act was amended to reclassify digital assets as financial instruments. That reclassification created the regulatory architecture that enabled Laser Digital's registration.
Laser Digital will initially offer liquidity services to domestic virtual asset service providers before expanding to provide digital asset trading services for institutional investors. The company has not announced a launch date for institutional trading.
Nomura, Japan's largest investment bank by market capitalization, entered crypto infrastructure through its Nomura Crypto Assets division and has expanded its holdings through subsidiary investments. Laser Digital operates as a separate legal entity under Nomura's ownership structure.
Japan's regulatory framework for crypto exchanges requires firms to demonstrate capital adequacy, anti-money-laundering controls, and cybersecurity standards set by the Financial Services Agency. The four-year gap in new registrations reflects the time required for applicants to build compliance infrastructure after the 2022 reclassification.
The FSA has licensed new operators under the amended regime. Japan has previously indicated interest in approving crypto spot ETFs, a product category that requires a functioning institutional trading infrastructure. Laser Digital's institutional trading expansion aligns with that regulatory direction.
Laser Digital's entry comes as global regulators have tightened oversight of crypto exchanges following collapses at FTX and other platforms. Nomura is an institutional firm pursuing crypto participation under strict regulatory conditions. If Laser Digital launches institutional trading within 12 months, it would test whether Japan's regulatory model can sustain both retail and institutional market segments.
