Mitsui Pioneers Digital Securities for Aircraft and Ships in Japan

Introduction

Mitsui & Co., a leading Japanese trading company, is set to launch the nation's first digital securities offering fractional ownership in aircraft and ships, according to a Nikkei report.

Key Takeaways

• Mitsui introduces digital securities for aircraft and ships via its Alterna platform.
• The digital securities market in Japan is projected to more than double by 2025.

Details

The new securities will be managed by Mitsui & Co. Digital Asset Management, which already dominates Japan's real estate tokenization sector through Alterna. This initiative will enable retail investors to gain fractional ownership of costly assets like planes and cargo ships with a minimum investment of 100,000 yen ($630).

Japan is on track to double its shipbuilding output by 2035, with aircraft demand expected to more than double by 2043. Mitsui aims to increase its digital securities sales to 100 billion yen by fiscal 2030. Future plans include offerings for lower-volatility assets such as corporate bonds and additional real estate products. The company also intends to use AI tools to reduce product development time from up to 12 months to just 1–2 months.

Market Impact

The digital securities market in Japan is experiencing rapid growth, with issuance reaching 152.9 billion yen in 2025, more than double the levels of 2024. Major players like Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities and the Osaka Digital Exchange are expanding access through secondary and peer-to-peer markets.