SBI Shinsei Bank is piloting a new approach to crypto rewards, adding a digital asset layer to familiar banking products. Starting June 10, ordinary deposit customers can earn vouchers worth 20% of their interest income, which they can redeem for Bitcoin, Ether, or XRP. The design is straightforward: savers keep their yen deposits in either ordinary savings or fixed-term accounts and earn regular interest. As an add-on, they get a voucher for crypto, no trading app or separate purchase required at the start. To actually claim the reward, customers do need to open an account with SBI VC Trade, but the engagement starts with the bank relationship they already have, not a crypto-specific onboarding.
That product design is the key detail. By tying crypto exposure to the deposit flow, the pilot lowers friction for retail access. Customers are not being asked to fund an exchange account first and make a separate purchase. Instead, crypto is packaged as an add-on to interest income, with Bitcoin, Ether, and XRP offered as the redemption options. For now, this is a 3-month pilot, and SBI Shinsei is considering a broader rollout if uptake is strong, which would extend this bank-led crypto rewards model more widely.