Japanese giant Mitsui & Co. enters the market, allowing fractional investments in airplanes and ships

Mitsui & Co., Japan’s leading trading company, officially announces its entry into the digital securities field. According to the latest news, Mitsui & Co. Digital Asset Management, a subsidiary, plans to launch Japan’s first digital security product backed by aircraft and ships as underlying assets, with an initial rollout expected in the fiscal year 2026 (starting April). This not only marks a milestone in Japan’s digital securities market but also reflects traditional enterprises’ recognition of asset tokenization.

Core Product Design

Based on the latest information, this digital security product features:

• Underlying assets: high-value transportation tools such as aircraft and ships
• Investment threshold: minimum subscription amount of approximately 100,000 yen, relatively accessible
• Investor type: aimed at retail investors, not limited to institutions
• Revenue model: investors can share leasing income from aircraft or ships
• Asset form: supports fractional investment, allowing individual investors to participate in high-value assets

This design logic is quite clear—Mitsui & Co. holds a large number of aircraft and ships, and through digital securities, these assets are divided into small shares, enabling ordinary investors to participate and earn leasing income.

Why Mitsui & Co.?

As one of Japan’s five major trading companies, Mitsui & Co. has a strong foundation in transportation and logistics assets. Leasing businesses for aircraft and ships are traditional strengths, with relatively stable and predictable income. Choosing these types of assets as underlying assets for digital securities leverages their advantages and provides investors with relatively clear income expectations.

Compared to the volatility of virtual assets, digital securities backed by tangible assets are more attractive to risk-averse investors.

Market Significance

This move has several implications:

From Japan’s regulatory perspective, this is also a positive signal. The Financial Services Agency of Japan has become more open to digital assets and blockchain applications in recent years. The willingness of large companies like Mitsui & Co. to launch such products indicates that Japan’s digital securities regulatory framework has become relatively mature.

Personal Insights

This case represents an important trend: digitization and fragmentation of traditional physical assets. Unlike purely digital assets like cryptocurrencies, these products are backed by real physical assets, making them more likely to gain mainstream investor and regulatory approval.

If Mitsui & Co.'s product operates successfully, more Japanese companies are expected to follow suit, tokenizing assets such as real estate, art, and infrastructure. This is a significant “rebranding” for the entire digital asset ecosystem—demonstrating that blockchain technology can be applied not only to virtual assets but also to empower traditional economies.

Summary

Mitsui & Co.'s launch of digital securities has three key implications: first, lowering the entry barrier for ordinary investors to high-value assets; second, demonstrating the commercial feasibility of asset tokenization; third, reflecting Japan’s open attitude toward digital asset applications. With the product scheduled to go live in April, we will observe the market’s actual response. If the response is positive, this could very well mark a new starting point for the development of digital securities in Japan.