Japanese Bank Sumitomo Mitsui Launches The Country's First Security Token With "a-1" Rating

On March 29, Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank (SMTB) partnered with Securitize to launch its first asset-backed securities token. This instrument is the first FIEA-compliant security token to be released on the Japanese market. The token received an 'a-1' rating from a Japanese rating agency, indicating a high likelihood that the product will fulfill its short-term obligations.

The token was created by tokenizing the beneficiary's paper certificates representing the investor's ownership of the underlying asset. The bank also established a trust company to manage the underlying securitized investments. The Securitize tokenization platform was used to issue a security token.

SMBT is a member of the Japan Security Token Association alongside local telecom giants NTT and Softbank. The firm first began exploring blockchain in October 2016. The bank then teamed up with IBM to study the use of DLT to improve the efficiency of asset management, real estate and banking.

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