au Kabucom (Mitsubishi UFJ eSmart Securities) to Eliminate Domestic Stock Trading Commissions From May 2026

Mitsubishi UFJ e-Smart Securities (formerly au Kabucom Securities) has announced a series of fee reductions set to take effect in May and June 2026. The changes include eliminating domestic stock trading commissions for SOR (Smart Order Routing) orders and lowering margin trading interest rates.

From May 18, 2026, customers who select SOR order routing will pay zero commission on domestic stock trades. This expands a previous policy—introduced in June 2024 for large traders and NISA users—to all clients using the SOR function. The SOR system, introduced in March 2025 and powered by Morgan Stanley's execution infrastructure, automatically finds the best available price across multiple venues. Clients will also be able to choose execution conditions previously unavailable with SOR, such as market-on-close, IOC, and others.

The company is additionally making its fractional share service "Puchi Kabu" free for all customers. Previously, only NISA users enjoyed commission-free fractional trades; from May 18 all Puchi Kabu trades will be commission-free, even though they do not use SOR routing.

In a separate move effective June 1, 2026, Mitsubishi UFJ e-Smart Securities will reduce margin lending and stock loan fees. The standard institutional margin lending rate will drop to 2.80% per annum (from 2.98%), and the stock loan rate to 1.10% (from 1.15%). For long-term general margin, the loan fee will decrease to 1.10% from 1.50%. The company says these rates will be the lowest among major online securities firms in Japan, alongside SBI Securities, Monex Securities, Matsui Securities, and Rakuten Securities.

The brokerage is also enhancing its loyalty program, adding new conditions such as daily eligibility, average investment trust balances, and asset valuation thresholds. Customers in the Gold tier will see their margin lending rate fall to 2.28% (from 2.68%) and long-term general margin rate to 2.10% (from 2.49%). The Gold tier and above will continue to receive free domestic stock trading even when not using SOR routing.

Mitsubishi UFJ e-Smart Securities is a joint venture between Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Mitsubishi UFJ Bank, and WealthNavi Inc. The new fees apply to trades executed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange main market as designated by QUICK; stocks listed on Nagoya, Fukuoka, or Sapporo exchanges are not eligible for SOR order routing and will retain standard commissions.