Japan-based finance entity SBI Holdings is reportedly teaming up with  Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (SMFG) to roll out a digital stock exchange. 

Specifically, the upcoming joint project is reportedly expected to become the nation’s first blockchain-powered exchange trading digital stocks. 

Both firms reportedly have plans down their pipelines to select Osaka as the location to release the exchange in Spring this year, with the platform to begin offering facilitation for digital securities in 2023. 

In preparation to make the exchange available, SBI and SMFG will establish an operator – Osaka Digital Exchange (ODX) – with SBI in possession of 60% stake in ODX, while SMFG will take up the remaining 40%. 

The new exchange will reportedly employ a proprietary trading network,  an electronic trading venue operated by a securities firm to allow trading off a traditional public exchange.

The new digital stock exchange is reportedly the rival of the Tokyo Stock Exchange – ranked 3rd for largest global stock exchange. 

The new initiative reportedly looks to offer a different option to the TSE, following a major outage occurred due to a system glitch in September last year. 

SBI and SMFG are two of the many entities spending resources on a Japan-based digital securities exchange. In April last year, Tokai Tokyo Financial Holdings disclosed its plans to build a digital stock exchange, in collaboration with blockchain entity Hash Dash.

SBI and SMFG have forged alliances to make digital banking services available via smartphones.