In order to isolate thermophilic bacteria with high activity of CMCase and xylanase, spent mushroom substrates was collected from an oyster mushroom cultivation farm in Jinju, Gyeongnam, Korea. Among the isolates, one strain designated as YJ09 was selected by agar diffusion method. The isolate YJ09 was identified as a member of Bacillus licheniformis based on biochemical characteristics using Bacillus ID kit and MicroLog system. Comparative 16S rDNA sequence analysis showed that isolate YJ09 formed a distinct phylogenetic tree within the genus Bacillus and was most closely related to Bacillus licheniformis with sequence similarity of 98.9%. Based on its physiological properties, biochemical characteristics and phylogenetic distinctiveness, the isolate YJ09 was classified as Bacillus licheniformis. The CMCase and xylanase activity of B. licheniformis YJ09 was slightly increased corresponding to the bacterial population from exponential phase to stationary phase in the growth curve of B. licheniformis YJ09.