BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 28. Japan's ITOCHU
Corporation, Mercuria Holdings and En Growth Fund have jointly
invested in Capital Ship Co., the holding company of Smart
Technologies & Resources, a domestic provider of duty-free systems,
ITOCHU said on October 28.


The investment comes as Japan's inbound tourism market expands
and the country prepares to introduce a revised duty-free shopping
system in November 2026.


Japan welcomed a record approximately 42.7 million foreign
visitors in 2025, while their spending in the country reached an
all-time high of around 9.5 trillion yen, according to ITOCHU.


Under the new duty-free system, travelers will pay the
tax-inclusive price when purchasing goods and receive a consumption
tax refund after customs approves their purchases upon departure.
The change is expected to increase demand for systems supporting
tax refunds and related retail operations.


“Smart Technologies develops and provides services including the
SmartDetax service, which uses AI to help duty-free retailers
improve operational efficiency, and the JPrefund tax refund and
refund-support service that enables duty-free retailers to return
the equivalent of the consumption tax to eligible customers,” the
company said.


Smart Technologies' services are currently used by more than
2,500 retailers. Ahead of the November 2026 reform, the company has
developed a refund system compatible with the new procedures, and
some participating retailers have already started offering services
under the revised method.







ITOCHU entered into a business alliance with Smart Technologies
in January 2026. Since then, the companies have worked to expand
the network of participating retailers and support their operations
in cooperation with BELLSYSTEM24, an ITOCHU equity-method affiliate
specializing in business process outsourcing (BPO) services.


“Through this investment, the ITOCHU Group and MHD Group will
draw on their respective customer bases, sales networks, and
expertise in the payment and finance domains to further strengthen
the business platform of Smart Technologies,” ITOCHU said.


The companies also plan to use purchase data and customer
interactions generated through duty-free shopping and tax refund
services to develop additional business opportunities in Japan's
growing inbound tourism market, including data-driven marketing and
sales promotion support.


ITOCHU is a Japanese trading and investment company with
operations across multiple industries, while Mercuria Holdings is
part of the Mercuria Group. The investment is intended to
strengthen Smart Technologies' business platform and expand its
role in Japan's duty-free retail and tourism ecosystem.