(Bloomberg) -- Daiwa Securities Group Inc. will issue its debut digital bonds to individuals and pay interest using Rakuten Group Inc.’s electronic money, the first such public offering in Japan. 

Daiwa will sell ¥1 billion ($6.7 million) of one-year 0.8% notes, according to a regulatory filing, in the latest example of a broadening range of fundraising in recent months in Japan’s corporate bond market.

Issuance has included the first public offering of corporate notes by an unrated company, and SoftBank Corp. selling corporate bond-type class shares. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. and other major banks established a digital securities platform, and the first trading of such securities started at Osaka Digital Exchange Co. in December. 

The digital corporate bond market is still in its infancy, though, and the amounts are generally quite small and on a trial basis. Daiwa’s digital company notes are new in that they are publicly offered and interest payments are made in the form of e-money. Marui Group Co. has issued digital bonds for its card members, but interest payments are made partly in cash and points.

Daiwa Securities Co. and Rakuten Securities Inc. will underwrite the offering.

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