What Is a Maritime Asset Token (MAT)? How Ownership Appears on Shipfinex

As Shipfinex wallet activation progresses, users are encountering an ownership experience that looks different from traditional bank balances or brokerage accounts.

Ship ownership operates within legal, jurisdictional, and regulatory frameworks that differ from conventional financial products. To reflect that structure digitally, Shipfinex uses Maritime Asset Tokens (MATs), designed to represent ownership clearly, transparently, and within established boundaries.

This newsletter takes a step back to explain what a Maritime Asset Token represents, why MATs are permissioned by design, and how the wallet and portfolio work together to reflect structured ownership on the platform.

What does a Maritime Asset Token (MAT) Represent?

To understand how ownership works on Shipfinex, it’s important to first understand what a Maritime Asset Token is.

A Maritime Asset Token (MAT) is a Real World Asset (RWA) Token that represents fractional ownership interests in a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) that holds a ship. Each ship listed on Shipfinex is placed into its own SPV, and ownership interests in that SPV are digitally represented through MATs.

When you participate in an offering, your ownership position appears in your portfolio, linked to the relevant ship. The token itself does not replace the legal structure. It serves as a digital representation of ownership interests that are defined and governed by the SPV’s legal documentation.

It is equally important to clarify what MATs are not.

MATs are not currencies and are not designed for payments or unrestricted transfer. They do not function like general-purpose digital tokens. Instead, MATs represent structured ownership interests that operate within defined boundaries, including:

• Eligibility requirements

• Jurisdictional constraints

• Transfer rules set out in the offering documentation

This distinction is fundamental to how Shipfinex structures fractional ship ownership, providing transparency and traceability, while remaining aligned with legal and regulatory expectations.

Transparency, Within Defined Ownership Rules

Blockchain infrastructure enables ownership records to be verifiable, time-stamped, and auditable. These characteristics support transparency by making it possible to track ownership positions and changes with clarity.

However, in regulated asset structures such as ship ownership, transparency does not mean unrestricted or anonymous transferability. Ownership must remain aligned with legal, jurisdictional, and regulatory requirements.

In traditional ship ownership models, transfers involve checks related to identity verification, sanctions and AML screening, jurisdictional eligibility, and the terms defined in shareholder or offering agreements. These constraints exist to ensure ownership remains compliant and legally enforceable.

Maritime Asset Tokens are designed to reflect these same realities in a digital format. Permissioned ownership standards are used so that:

• Ownership remains within an eligible holder base

• Transfers follow predefined rules set out in the offering documentation

• On-chain records remain aligned with off-chain legal obligations

This approach allows transparency to operate within defined boundaries, preserving clarity and traceability without bypassing regulatory expectations.

How This Is Reflected on Shipfinex

On Shipfinex:

• The wallet enables participation by managing balances and transaction authorisation

• The portfolio shows ownership positions linked to specific ships

When MATs appear in your portfolio, they reflect ownership interests as defined by the relevant documentation. Any transferability or restrictions are governed by those terms.

The platform is designed so that digital records and legal structures remain aligned.

What This Means for You

If you choose to participate in MAT offerings:

• Ownership positions will appear in your portfolio

• Transfers (where permitted) follow predefined eligibility rules

• Rights and obligations are governed by offering documentation

Before participating, you should review:

• The relevant offering documents

• Eligibility criteria and any transfer restrictions

• The full Risk Disclosure Statement

What’s Coming Next

In the next newsletter, we’ll explain how permissioned ownership rules are enforced at the infrastructure level, and why Shipfinex uses specific technical standards to ensure that wallet-authorised transfers remain aligned with legal ownership frameworks.

Understanding what a MAT represents is the foundation. Understanding how those rules are enforced comes next.