SBI Holdings invests $270 million for 20% stake in Indonesia's Ajaib

SBI Holdings secures major stake in Indonesian fintech

Japanese financial services group SBI Holdings has invested $270 million in Ajaib Group, an Indonesian investment platform. The deal gives SBI approximately 20% of the company.

Ajaib confirmed the investment in a LinkedIn post on Friday. The platform described the funding as Indonesia's largest tech funding round since 2022. This latest investment brings Ajaib's total funding since it started in 2019 to more than $500 million.

SBI did not publicly state the dollar amount in its own announcement. However, it confirmed that the stake is around 20%, making Ajaib an equity-method affiliate of the Japanese firm.

Key details of the investment

• SBI Holdings invested $270 million in Ajaib Group.
• The investment buys an approximate 20% stake in the company.
• Ajaib is now considered an affiliate of SBI Holdings.
• The deal is the largest tech funding round in Indonesia since 2022.

Ajaib's mix of traditional and digital assets

Ajaib is a multi-asset platform based in Jakarta. It offers access to stocks, bonds, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, commodities, and foreign exchange. An exchange-traded fund is a type of investment fund that tracks an index or asset and trades like a stock.

The platform also deals in digital assets. It provides access to crypto assets and stablecoins. A stablecoin is a type of cryptocurrency designed to keep a steady value, usually linked to a currency like the US dollar.

Additionally, Ajaib offers over-the-counter (OTC) stablecoin settlement services. These services help companies and institutional investors in Indonesia settle payments and manage liquidity using stablecoins.

SBI expands its digital asset network in Asia

SBI Holdings said the partnership will help promote digital asset adoption across Asia. The company already operates several digital asset businesses globally.

Its current operations include SBI VC Trade, a crypto exchange in Japan; Coinhako, a crypto exchange in Singapore; and B2C2, a market maker in the UK. SBI is also developing Strium, a Layer 1 blockchain for financial applications, and has launched JPYSC, a yen-pegged stablecoin.

Yoshitaka Kitao, chairman and president of SBI Holdings, said the importance of global infrastructure for digital assets is greater than ever in the era of tokenization. Tokenization is the process of converting rights to an asset into a digital token on a blockchain.

Kitao added that SBI is building a network of digital asset exchanges focused on Southeast Asia. He called this the "SBI APAC Digital Economic Zone" initiative. He noted that Ajaib's combination of traditional financial products and digital assets fits well with this strategy.

What is confirmed

The investment amount of $270 million and the stake size of approximately 20% are confirmed by both Ajaib and SBI Holdings, though SBI only disclosed the percentage. Ajaib's claim that this is Indonesia's largest tech funding round since 2022 is confirmed by their own statement.

Why this matters

The deal highlights a growing interest from major traditional financial institutions in combining conventional investment products with digital assets. For Ajaib, the investment provides significant capital to expand its services in Indonesia and potentially the wider region. For SBI, it marks a strategic move to strengthen its presence in the Asian digital asset market.

Sources

• The Block