Japan’s National Business Pension Fund, based in Okayama City, is planning to add cryptocurrency to its portfolio for the first time, according to reports from Foresight News and CoinPost.
The fund aims to allocate around 1% of its operating assets to crypto by fiscal year 2026. The investment will be made through a passive fund managed by a large hedge fund, with the main goal of reducing currency risk and improving overall diversification.
As part of a broader portfolio shift, the fund also plans to cut its reliance on the Japanese yen, lowering its share from about 80% to 70%. The freed-up allocation would be moved into a mix of assets: roughly 10% into currencies from developed countries, and the remaining 5% into emerging market currencies, gold, and cryptocurrencies.
Officials behind the plan say Bitcoin stands out because it has shown very low correlation with the US dollar index. This makes it potentially useful as a hedge if the dollar weakens or global currency conditions become more unstable.
Beyond long-term allocation, the fund also said it will continue studying crypto-related strategies, including arbitrage trading opportunities, as part of its broader research into digital assets.