Japan's dominant security token platform Progmat completed a full infrastructure migration on July 13, 2026, moving ¥452 billion ($2.8 billion) in tokenized real estate and corporate bonds from R3's Corda 5 distributed ledger to a dedicated Avalanche Layer 1 network. The migration, code-named "Pr...
"The completion of this Avalanche integration represents a landmark moment where the Japanese security token market connects directly with the global real-world asset ecosystem." — Tatsuya Saito, Founder and CEO, Progmat
Japan's dominant security token platform Progmat completed a full infrastructure migration on July 13, 2026, moving ¥452 billion ($2.8 billion) in tokenized real estate and corporate bonds from R3's Corda 5 distributed ledger to a dedicated Avalanche Layer 1 network. The migration, code-named "Project Keystone," was executed with zero operational disruption across all live securities.
The move marks the largest single migration of regulated securities from a permissioned blockchain to a public chain infrastructure. Progmat controls 63% of cumulative security token issuance volume in Japan and 53.8% of all projects in the national market. Its decision to abandon Corda — once the default institutional blockchain — in favor of EVM-compatible public infrastructure signals a structural shift in how regulated financial institutions view permissioned versus public chain architectures.
Simultaneously, Progmat's parent ecosystem is preparing to bring Japan's $1.6 trillion daily JGB repo market on-chain, with a working group of 40+ institutions including BlackRock Japan, MUFG, Mizuho, and SMBC targeting T+0 settlement via tokenized government bonds paired with stablecoins.
Progmat's Project Keystone involved converting its entire smart contract architecture from Java-based Corda contracts to Solidity-based EVM contracts. The platform deployed on a dedicated Avalanche L1 via AvaCloud, which carries SOC 1 and SOC 2 Type II certifications for institutional compliance requirements.
Performance metrics post-migration:
| Metric | Corda 5 (Previous) | Avalanche L1 (Current) | |--------|-------------------|----------------------| | Rights Transfer Speed | Baseline | 3x–5x faster | | Transaction Finality | Multiple seconds | Sub-2 seconds | | Smart Contract Language | Java (Corda) | Solidity (EVM) | | Interoperability | Closed permissioned | EVM-compatible, cross-chain capable | | Compliance Certification | N/A | SOC 1, SOC 2 Type II |
The migration was first announced in February 2026, with a completion target of end of June 2026. Progmat confirmed on-schedule delivery with zero disruption to financial institutions using the platform. Datachain, a blockchain interoperability startup, serves as the cross-chain delivery-versus-payment (DvP) technology partner, enabling future settlement across non-Avalanche blockchains.
Nick Mussallem, CEO of AvaCloud, stated that executing a full migration of over ¥452 billion in regulated securities without operational disruption establishes "a new benchmark for institutional-grade blockchain infrastructure."
According to BOOSTRY's Japan Security Token Market Report (FY2025), published April 2, 2026, Japan's domestic security token market reached the following milestones:
Issuance Data (FY2025, ending March 2026):
| Metric | FY2025 | Cumulative | |--------|--------|-----------| | Total Issuance | ¥165 billion | ¥333.3 billion | | Tokens Issued | 24 | 82 | | YoY Growth | ~100% (doubled) | — |
Asset Class Breakdown (FY2025):
Seven individual transactions exceeded ¥10 billion, indicating that deal size — not just deal count — is growing. The secondary market platform START (operated by ODX) had 8 tokens listed with ¥33.6 billion total market capitalization as of March 31, 2026.
BOOSTRY forecasts FY2026 public market issuance of ¥200 billion, with cumulative issuance reaching ¥530 billion. The broader Japanese digital securities sector is projected to exceed ¥1.05 trillion ($7 billion+) by end of 2026, according to tracee Briefings.
Progmat's Market Position:
Progmat's migration represents a broader institutional verdict on permissioned blockchain architecture. R3's Corda was the default choice for enterprise blockchain deployments from 2017 to 2023. The thesis was straightforward: regulated entities needed privacy, controlled access, and known counterparties. Public chains were considered unsuitable for securities.
That thesis has been discredited by operational evidence. Key factors driving the shift:
1. Liquidity isolation. Corda networks operated as closed environments. Assets issued on one Corda instance could not interact with assets or liquidity on another. Each deployment was effectively an island.
2. Developer scarcity. Corda's JVM-based smart contract system produced a small developer pool relative to EVM/Solidity, which commands the largest smart contract developer community. Progmat's migration to EVM directly addresses this constraint.
3. Interoperability demand. Institutional participants increasingly require settlement against stablecoins (USDC, bank-issued deposit tokens) and cross-chain DvP. Public EVM infrastructure enables this natively; Corda required custom bridges that never reached production scale.
4. Cost structure. Dedicated Avalanche L1 deployment via AvaCloud provides enterprise-grade control (validator selection, compliance tooling) at lower operational cost than maintaining Corda infrastructure licenses and bespoke node operation.
SBI R3 Japan — the entity built to commercialize Corda in Japan — has itself pivoted. On July 13, 2026, SBI announced a strategic partnership with the Solana Foundation, rebranding SBI R3 Japan as "SBI Solana Global." The entity that was created to sell permissioned ledgers now positions itself around public chain infrastructure.
In May 2026, Progmat established a Tokenized Government Bonds & On-Chain Repo Working Group within its Digital Asset Co-Creation Consortium (DCC). The scope is significant: Japan's JGB repo market processes approximately $1.6 trillion in daily outstanding volume.
Working Group Participants (40+ institutions):
| Category | Institutions | |----------|-------------| | Megabanks | MUFG, Mizuho Bank, SMBC | | Asset Management | BlackRock Japan, State Street Trust Bank | | Securities | Daiwa Securities, SBI Securities, Nomura Holdings | | Insurance | Tokio Marine Holdings | | Regulatory Observers | Bank of Japan, Ministry of Finance |
Objectives:
The working group will publish its report in October 2026 and targets commercial launch before year-end 2026.
Unresolved decisions: The cash leg denomination remains open. Options include a yen-denominated stablecoin, USDC, or bank-issued deposit tokens. The Bank of Japan's posture on providing tokenized central bank reserves is also unresolved. BlackRock Japan is positioning as a potential cash-leg provider, consistent with its $2.87 billion BUIDL tokenized money market fund deployed across multiple chains globally.
If executed, this would be the first G7 sovereign debt market to operate on public blockchain rails with atomic same-day settlement.
Japan's tokenization infrastructure is not consolidating around a single chain. The same week Progmat completed its Avalanche migration (July 13, 2026), SBI Holdings announced a strategic alliance with the Solana Foundation.
SBI-Solana Partnership Scope:
SBI and DigiFT simultaneously launched the JX token on Solana — the first tokenized Japanese listed-equity strategy available on a public chain. The token provides accredited investors with access to a Japanese high-dividend equity fund managed by SBI Asset Management.
Japan's Emerging Multi-Chain Architecture:
| Platform | Chain | Focus | AUM/Volume | |----------|-------|-------|-----------| | Progmat | Avalanche L1 | Real estate, bonds, JGBs | ¥452B | | SBI Solana Global | Solana | Equities, stablecoins, cross-border | Early stage | | BOOSTRY (Nomura) | Proprietary (ibet) | Corporate bonds | ~¥80B est. |
Other institutional presences on Avalanche in Japan include TIS Inc., Toyota Blockchain Lab, Konami, and the Ponta loyalty program (100 million user accounts).
Japan's security token market exists within a rapidly expanding global landscape. According to Mordor Intelligence, the global tokenized securities market is expected to grow from $24.69 billion in 2025 to $35.82 billion in 2026, reaching $184.27 billion by 2031 at a 38.76% CAGR.
Regional Comparison (2025 Market Share):
| Region | Market Share | Key Developments (2026) | |--------|-------------|------------------------| | North America | 34.9% | DTCC tokenizing Russell 1000; SEC/CFTC digital securities definition | | Asia-Pacific | 23.8% | Progmat migration; SBI-Solana; Japan JGB initiative | | Europe | ~25% | Bank of England/FCA tokenization framework (May 2026) |
Japan's regulatory advantage is structural. Unlike the US, where securities law classification remains contested, Japan's Financial Instruments and Exchange Act (FIEA) formally classified tokenized real-estate interests as electronically recorded transferable securities in November 2024. This provides clear legal grounding absent in most other jurisdictions.
Japan's approach differs from the US (where DTCC operates within existing custody frameworks) and the UK (where HSBC received approval for a single tokenized gilt). Japan is building a multi-platform, multi-chain national infrastructure with explicit regulatory backing and megabank participation.
Progmat's ¥452 billion migration represents a verdict, not an experiment. The largest institutional operator in Japan's security token market evaluated permissioned blockchain infrastructure against public chain alternatives and chose to migrate entirely. The simultaneous pivot by SBI — from a Corda licensee to a Solana Foundation partner — confirms this is not a single-company decision but a market-wide architectural shift.
The economic logic follows the value framework that governs institutional infrastructure decisions: interoperability with global liquidity pools, developer ecosystem depth, operational cost efficiency, and settlement speed. Public chains with institutional tooling (dedicated L1s, SOC certifications, compliance modules) now satisfy requirements that previously demanded permissioned architectures.
The JGB repo initiative extends the implications further. If Japan's $1.6 trillion daily repo market achieves T+0 settlement on public chain infrastructure with stablecoin cash legs, it will establish the template for other G7 sovereign debt markets. The October 2026 working group report and year-end commercial launch target will determine whether this remains a study or becomes operational infrastructure.
Japan is not experimenting with tokenized securities. It is building production-grade national financial infrastructure on public blockchains, backed by its three largest banks, its primary financial regulator, and the world's largest asset manager.