Japan“One of the pioneering firms in web3 solutions, digital assets and tokenization, recognized for its innovation and solid reputation across Spain and Latin America.”
Jorge CorredorLawyer, Rincón Cuéllar & Asociados
Asset tokenization in Japan
We build the platform to tokenize bonds, shares and profit participations in Japan: investor onboarding, ERC-3643 tokens and the connection to the registers required by the Companies Act, coordinated with the law firm that structures the issuance as a security token under the FIEA.
Tokenize your asset
They trust Metlabs to tokenize their assets
Why Japan
Why tokenize assets in Japan?
Japan gave security tokens a legal form in 2020: investment rights that circulate as tokens are electronically recorded transferable rights under the FIEA, with the disclosure of a share or a bond. Since December 2023, START has traded security tokens, starting with rights over a real estate trust. For an issuer, the decision is which right to tokenize and which registered firm places it.
2020
the year the FIEA regime for electronically recorded transferable rights took effect
e-Gov · Act No. 28 of 201950
persons from which an offering of a security token becomes a public offering
e-Gov · FIEA Enforcement Order2023
the year START, Osaka Digital Exchange's trading system, began trading security tokens
SMBC · Dec 25, 2023What gets tokenized
Debt, equity and revenue: what gets tokenized in Japan
Almost every tokenized issuance represents one of these three rights against the issuer. In Japan, the right determines whether the token is a bond or a share that keeps its corporate formalities, or an investment right that becomes a security once tokenized, and which registration its intermediary needs.
| Right | Debt | Equity | Revenue |
|---|---|---|---|
| What is issued | Corporate bonds (shasai) | Shares | Profit participations (tokumei kumiai) |
| The investor receives | The investor lends to the issuer and receives interest and, at maturity, the principal. | The investor joins the share capital: dividends, voting rights and a share of any sale or liquidation. | The investor receives a share of the profits of a business or an asset: rents, energy sold, sales or royalties. |
| The token enforces |
|
|
|
| Issuer | Kabushiki kaisha or gōdō kaisha | Kabushiki kaisha | Business operator (K.K. or G.K.) |
| Register | Bond register (shasai genbo) | Shareholder register | Issuer's electronic ledger |
| Law | Companies Act and FIEA | Companies Act and FIEA | FIEA, Art. 2(3) |
| How it is issued | Any commercial company, including a gōdō kaisha, can issue bonds. A transfer can only be asserted against the issuer and third parties once the acquirer is entered in the bond register the company keeps, so the token must update it. Once tokenized, the bond keeps its obligations as a security. | A share transfer can only be asserted against the company and third parties once it is entered in the shareholder register. Membership interests in a gōdō kaisha are also securities, but transferring them requires the consent of all members unless the articles provide otherwise. | A tokumei kumiai contract that distributes a business's profits is generally an interest in a collective investment scheme. Once tokenized and transferable, it becomes an electronically recorded transferable right: a Paragraph 1 security whose intermediation requires Type I registration. |
Regulation
Regulation guide for JapanWhich regulation applies to tokenization in Japan?
The Financial Instruments and Exchange Act (FIEA). Its amendment by Act No. 28 of 2019, in force since May 1, 2020, created electronically recorded transferable rights: interests in collective investment schemes and other rights that, once represented by transferable tokens, take on the disclosure and intermediation rules of a security such as a share or a bond.
The FSA decides case by case: if updating the issuer's electronic ledger and transferring the right happen together, the token is in principle an electronically recorded transferable right. An offering to 50 or more persons is public and requires filing a securities registration statement unless exempt, and whoever intermediates it needs Type I registration. For real estate, the usual route is a token over beneficial interests in a trust.
Tokenized shares and bonds keep the formalities of the Companies Act, while crypto-assets and electronic payment instruments have their own registrations under the Payment Services Act. The July 2026 reform moving crypto-assets into the FIEA awaits its implementing order. We coordinate the structure with specialist law firms, and registered firms provide the regulated services.
Japan
FavourableScore88
- Authorities
- Financial Services Agency (FSA) and Local Finance Bureaus
- Latest regulatory change
- Jul 2026
Key authorisations
- Crypto-asset exchange and custody registration according to activity
- Limited intermediation registration on behalf of an entitled provider
- Issuer status and electronic payment instrument service registration
- FIEA Type I, Type II or other registrations by instrument and function
Our legal partners
Methodology
How we tokenize an asset in Japan, step by step
The four phases of our methodology, with the parties involved in Japan. The law firm and our engineering team work in parallel from the asset review to investor acquisition.
We review the asset's title, encumbrances and cash flows, and decide with the issuer whether the token will be a bond, a share or a profit participation. That sets the vehicle, a kabushiki kaisha, a gōdō kaisha or a trust, the amount and the rules of the issuance.
The law firm classifies the token under the FIEA, decides whether the offering is public or private and prepares the securities registration statement where needed. If the token is an electronically recorded transferable right, placement goes through a Type I registered firm.
We configure the white label platform with your brand: investor onboarding with KYC, signature, payment and ERC-3643 tokens carrying the offering's restrictions. The connection to the bond or shareholder register, which makes each transfer enforceable, is custom development.
With the issuer and the registered firm placing the issuance, we prepare the offer page and measure the journey to a paid subscription. After the issuance, the platform handles distributions, transfers between verified investors and reporting.
Reviews in Japan
What do our clients think of Metlabs?
“We structured the tokenization of real estate projects with them, and I value the team's ability to understand our corporate needs and genuinely solve them.”
Joan MejíaManager, GLOBYNE
“They advised us on the feasibility of tokenizing real estate assets in Uruguay with direct, cordial treatment. A professional team, responsive and always available.”
Álvaro Silva SantamaríaCEO, Sp Inmuebles
“Great professionals at structuring tokenized projects, with technical command and attention to detail that inspire full confidence at every stage of the work.”
Francisco BetancourtVerified Google review
“As a blockchain lawyer, I value their experience and professionalism in consulting and executing tokenization projects. Technology partners you can fully trust.”
Vanessa RivasBlockchain lawyer, El Salvador
“Great professionals, very attentive to their clients and always mindful of every detail. Working with their team has been a genuine pleasure from start to finish.”
CriptorentVerified Google review
“A very professional yet approachable company that empathizes with your doubts and needs. Highly recommended for entrepreneurs with a tokenization project.”
Javier EspasaTokenization entrepreneur
“Exceptional in every sense. From legal support I value their rigor and transparency: working with Metlabs means professionalism, innovation and security.”
Pedro A. Agúndez MéndezGoogle Local Guide
“Excellent service across blockchain development, asset tokenization and consulting. A very professional team that I recommend wholeheartedly, without reservation.”
José Luis DíazVerified Google review
“I have worked with them on several projects and they are very professional. A guarantee that everything turns out perfectly. Without a doubt, 100% recommended.”
Ignacio Fernández JiménezVerified Google review
“One of the pioneering firms in web3 solutions, digital assets and tokenization, recognized for its innovation and solid reputation across Spain and Latin America.”
Jorge CorredorLawyer, Rincón Cuéllar & Asociados
“Great professionals at structuring tokenized projects, with technical command and attention to detail that inspire full confidence at every stage of the work.”
Francisco BetancourtVerified Google review
“A very professional yet approachable company that empathizes with your doubts and needs. Highly recommended for entrepreneurs with a tokenization project.”
Javier EspasaTokenization entrepreneur
“I have worked with them on several projects and they are very professional. A guarantee that everything turns out perfectly. Without a doubt, 100% recommended.”
Ignacio Fernández JiménezVerified Google review
“We structured the tokenization of real estate projects with them, and I value the team's ability to understand our corporate needs and genuinely solve them.”
Joan MejíaManager, GLOBYNE
“As a blockchain lawyer, I value their experience and professionalism in consulting and executing tokenization projects. Technology partners you can fully trust.”
Vanessa RivasBlockchain lawyer, El Salvador
“Exceptional in every sense. From legal support I value their rigor and transparency: working with Metlabs means professionalism, innovation and security.”
Pedro A. Agúndez MéndezGoogle Local Guide
“They advised us on the feasibility of tokenizing real estate assets in Uruguay with direct, cordial treatment. A professional team, responsive and always available.”
Álvaro Silva SantamaríaCEO, Sp Inmuebles
“Great professionals, very attentive to their clients and always mindful of every detail. Working with their team has been a genuine pleasure from start to finish.”
CriptorentVerified Google review
“Excellent service across blockchain development, asset tokenization and consulting. A very professional team that I recommend wholeheartedly, without reservation.”
José Luis DíazVerified Google review
Platform
What does our white label tokenization platform include in Japan?
The investor portal, ERC-3643 tokens and issuer console, under your brand. Out of the box it handles onboarding, signing, payment and distributions; anything else your issuance needs, such as a local payment method or a connection to your bank or custodian, we build on the same platform.
Request a demo
- Your brand and domainYour visual identity and legal notices across the investor portal.
- Investor onboardingSign-up, KYC with My Number Card, KYB, APTCP checks and a custodial wallet.
- End-to-end investmentE-signature and payment in yen by bank transfer over the Zengin System.
- ERC-3643 tokensEvery subscription is issued under the rules of a notified FIEA public offering.
- Issuer consoleProjects, investors, yen reconciliation, distributions and reporting.
- Compliance and audit trailKYC and APTCP file per investor and an exportable audit log.
Institutional custody, integrated
We integrate custody and key management providers through their APIs, including Fireblocks, BitGo, Coinbase Prime, Anchorage Digital, Copper and Ledger Enterprise. Depending on the provider and model, keys are managed with MPC or multisig so that none depends on a single device. If the token is a security, custody on behalf of clients is provided by an authorized entity.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about tokenization in Japan
What we are asked before a project starts.
Talk to our teamIs asset tokenization legal in Japan?
Yes. Since May 2020, the FIEA has regulated investment rights represented by tokens as electronically recorded transferable rights, and tokenized shares and bonds remain securities. What requires registration is the activity: intermediating the tokens with Type I registration or providing crypto-asset services under the Payment Services Act.
Can a gōdō kaisha be tokenized?
Yes. Membership interests in a gōdō kaisha are securities under the FIEA and, once tokenized, are in principle electronically recorded transferable rights, subject to the exceptions in the definitions ordinance. Transferring them requires the consent of all members unless the articles provide otherwise. A gōdō kaisha can also issue bonds.
From how many investors is a security token offering public in Japan?
A security token is a Paragraph 1 security under the FIEA, so an offering to 50 or more persons is public and requires a securities registration statement. There are exemptions, such as offerings only to qualified institutional investors or, in the cases set by ordinance, offerings below 100 million yen.
Does a real estate token give ownership of the property in Japan?
Not by itself. Usually the token represents beneficial interests in a trust that holds the property. The first security token traded on START, in December 2023, represented beneficial interests in a trust with an indirect stake in a hotel in Kobe, not ownership of the building.
Asset tokenization
Assets we tokenize in Japan.
Asset tokenization
Articles on tokenization
Real Asset Tokenization: How RWA Tokenization Works
How to structure an RWA project: holder rights, issuance, recordkeeping, payments and recovery. What blockchain adds and what depends on the legal arrangement.
What are the differences between security tokens and utility tokens?
How to distinguish financial rights from service access, what legal classification examines and why a token’s name does not determine its regulation.
Real estate tokenization companies and platforms
How to compare tokenized real estate platforms and companies by role, rights, integration and operations, separating technology, issuance and distribution.
Tokenize your asset in Japan
Tell us which right you want to issue and we will propose the technical structure, timeline and phased budget.
Where we are
We're your tokenization company in:
Metlabs Offices
Av. García Sabell, 1, Edificio Proa 15009 A Coruña, Spain
We tokenize assets in
SpainUnited StatesUAEUnited KingdomMexicoSingaporeAustraliaSwitzerlandColombiaArgentinaChilePeruPortugalGermanyHong KongBrazilEcuadorFranceIndiaPanamaAndorraAustriaBahrainBelgiumBoliviaCanadaCosta RicaCubaCyprusCzechiaDenmarkDominican RepublicEl SalvadorEstoniaFinlandGreeceGuatemalaHondurasHungaryIrelandIsraelItalyKuwaitLiechtensteinLithuaniaLuxembourgMaltaMonacoMoroccoNetherlandsNew ZealandNicaraguaNigeriaNorwayOmanParaguayPolandPuerto RicoQatarRomaniaSan MarinoSaudi ArabiaSeychellesSouth AfricaSouth KoreaSwedenTurkeyUruguayVenezuela
