Japan’s E-Commerce Giant Rakuten Launches NFT Marketplace

Rakuten said its NFT marketplace would allow for the purchase, sale and trade of virtual assets based on Japanese manga and TV shows

by Sebastian Sinclair /

February 28, 2022 05:30 am

Close up of Rakuten sign. Silicon Valley, US. Credit: Shutterstock

Rakuten has launched its own NFT platform for the sale and trade of virtual assets in a bid to cash in on the crypto sector
The company said its platform also features an ability for IP holders to build their own webites supporting the issuance and sale of NFTs

Japanese e-commerce giant Rakuten is hoping to capture some of the fervor surrounding NFTs and has launched its own marketplace for users to buy, sell and trade them.

According to a press release on Friday, the company said its Rakuten NFT (non-fungible token) platform is focused on NFTs in areas such as sports and entertainment, including music and anime.

The marketplace also features a “one-stop” platform providing intellectual property (IP) holders with the ability to build their own website for the issuance and sale of NFTs, the company said.

Newsletter

Subscribe to The Breakdown

In the coming years, Rakuten said it plans to introduce a peer-to-peer NFT issuance and sale service supporting IP holders worldwide in a bid to “spur further development of a global market” for the digital medium.

NFTs are digital assets tied to blockchains that represent ownership over real-world or virtual goods.

Rakuten’s marketplace debut comes at a time when the trading and selling of NFTs have continued to prove lucrative despite the wider cryptocurrency market suffering significant declines in value.

While daily sales volumes for the virtual assets have dropped from a peak of $422 million witnessed in August, the market was recently estimated to be worth between $20 billion to $40 billion.

Hoping to build on its recent foray into the crypto industry, Rakuten said it would be releasing NFTs containing illustrations from famed manga artists and video footage from TV Asashi as well as digital trading cards.

Last year, the company opened up functionality for its users to pay in crypto at select merchants throughout Japan by enabling payments via Rakuten Pay and Rakuten Point Cards at point-of-sales terminals.

Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

The Breakdown: Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily.
0xResearch: Alpha in your inbox. Think like an analyst.

Tags

Newsletter

The Breakdown

Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily, with Byron Gilliam.

Upcoming Events

Digital Asset Summit 2026

Javits Center North | 445 11th Ave

Tues - Thurs, March 24 - 26, 2026

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

buy tickets learn more

recent research

Research

Kinetiq Protocol: From LST Infrastructure to HIP-3 Deployer

Kinetiq has established itself as Hyperliquid's dominant liquid staking protocol, holding 82.5% of LST market share with $610M in TVL. The protocol is now expanding beyond its kHYPE staking core into higher take-rate verticals: iHYPE for institutional custody rails, Launch for HIP-3 capital formation, and Markets for builder-deployed perpetuals. We view Markets, launching Jan. 12, as the highest-potential product line given its mechanically scalable, activity-linked unit economics. Near-term revenue remains anchored by kHYPE's KIP-2 fee schedule (~$1.6M annualized), while Markets provides embedded optionality if HIP-3 economics normalize post-Growth Mode. KNTQ's setup is relatively clean: zero insider unlocks until November 2026, 6.2% buyback yield from staking revenue, and cleared airdrop overhang. Risks center on unproven Markets execution, declining kHYPE TVL despite ongoing incentives, and competition from Hyperliquid's native initiatives.

by Research Team