Japan’s Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama said she fully supports the integration of crypto trading services by the country’s stock exchanges, as she touted 2026 as the “digital year,” according to a report by Japanese crypto news site Coinpost.

Katayama emphasized that regulated venues will play a central role in expanding crypto adoption at a ceremony in Tokyo on Jan. 5 to mark the first stock market trading session of the year. “For the public to enjoy the benefits of digital assets and blockchain-type assets, the role of securities and commodity exchanges is important,” she said.

Digital asset trading in Japan remains largely siloed from traditional capital markets. The separation has been a defining feature of Japan’s regulatory approach, as digital assets have long been governed under the Payment Services Act rather than securities law. However, regulators are now considering shifting crypto into the securities framework that governs stocks and bonds to better reflect how these assets are used and regulated

Katayama also pointed to overseas precedent, highlighting how crypto investment products have gained traction in the U.S. “In the U.S., through ETF structures, they have spread as a means of hedging against inflation, and similar efforts are expected in Japan,” she said, signaling openness to more mainstream crypto investment vehicles.

Her comments come as Japan’s Financial Services Agency advances plans to overhaul crypto regulation and taxation by the 2026 fiscal year, including proposals to move crypto gains into a flatter tax framework and align certain digital assets more closely with traditional financial products. Industry participants have long argued that such reforms are necessary to keep crypto activity onshore.

“As finance minister, I will fully support efforts by exchanges toward developing such cutting-edge fintech and technology-enabled trading environments,” Katayama said, reinforcing the government’s shift from cautious oversight toward structured integration.