A giant bluefin tuna just broke the bank at Tokyo’s Toyosu fish market. In the market’s first auction of the year, a 243-kilogram tuna sold for a heart-stopping 510.3 million yen—roughly $3.2 million—smashing all previous records.
The winning bid came from Kiyoshi Kimura, the so-called “Tuna King” and president of the Sushi Zanmai restaurant chain. Kimura is a regular headline-maker at these New Year auctions, famous for placing the highest bids year after year.
Even he was a little stunned this time. After the auction, Kimura said the first tuna of the year is considered a symbol of good luck, but he admitted the bidding shot up faster than he’d expected.
This isn’t his first record. Back in 2012, he paid 56.5 million yen. In 2013, he topped that with 155 million. Then in 2019, he set another high mark at 333.6 million yen—a number that seemed unbelievable then but looks almost modest now.
The New Year auction at Toyosu is famous for these sky-high prices. Buyers aren’t just there for the fish—they’re playing for tradition, prestige, and public attention. Last year’s first tuna went for 207 million yen to the Onodera Group, another sushi chain.
The auction kicked off before sunrise, drawing big crowds of locals and tourists all eager to watch the rapid-fire bidding. This year’s event started around 5 a.m. and kept everyone on the edge of their seats.
Soon after the sale, the record-breaking tuna was sliced and served at Sushi Zanmai locations.
