Yamasa Co LTD

What Yamasa Co LTD does

Yamasa Co., Ltd. (山佐株式会社), operating under the YAMASA GROUP brand, is a privately-held Japanese diversified holding company founded in February 1967 and headquartered in Niimi City, Okayama Prefecture. The parent itself is small (¥15M stated capital, 34 employees as of April 2025) and operates through four wholly-owned subsidiaries — KaeRuu Co., Ltd., Yamasa Sanyo Co., Ltd., Yamasa Next Co., Ltd., and Yamasa Frontier Co., Ltd. (established September 2021). The group runs seven distinct business segments rather than a unified platform: aircraft leasing (70+ aircraft leased to ~30 airlines in ~20 countries, since 1986), ship leasing (10+ vessels, since 2001), solar power generation (DC 622MW across 102 plants in Japan, since 2013, including the 79.5MW Watari plant), US single-family and multi-family residential rentals (10,100+ detached houses and 11 apartment complexes across 19 US cities, since 2018), petroleum sales and service stations under the Oka Seki Division (with adjacent agricultural machinery manufacturing and sales), and industrial drone services including a national drone license school (since 2018). The solar fleet is transitioning from Japan's FIT to FIP regulatory scheme from 2024 onward. Group offices are maintained in Niimi, Okayama City, and Tokyo; corporate contact is routed through [email protected]. The group is led by Representative Director Sano Shinichi (佐野慎一).

Revenue mechanics vary by segment and are largely undisclosed: aircraft and ship leasing operate as recurring B2B enterprise contracts with airlines and maritime operators; solar generates managed-services revenue under regulated tariff/premium schemes feeding the Japanese grid; SFR/MFR operates as recurring residential rentals to tenants; petroleum and agricultural machinery are retail/transactional through service stations; drones are professional services plus a training school. Go-to-market is enterprise field sales across all major segments, with the corporate website (yamasa.co.jp) and dedicated divisional sites (yamasa-solar.com, okaseki.co.jp, yamasa-sky.com) serving as top-of-funnel information channels. The company explicitly discloses no proprietary technology, patents, trademarks, APIs, or AI/ML capabilities, and pricing is not publicly disclosed across any line. No funding rounds, M&A activity, regulatory actions, or partnerships were disclosed; ownership is closely-held with no parent company, VC, or PE backing identified.

Name

Yamasa Co LTD

Legal name

山佐株式会社

Website

https://yamasa.co.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

1967

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Yamasa Co., Ltd. (YAMASA GROUP) is a privately-held Japanese diversified holding company founded in 1967, operating aircraft and ship leasing, a 622MW Japanese solar fleet, US residential rentals (10,100+ homes across 19 cities), petroleum sales, agricultural machinery, and industrial drone services through four wholly-owned subsidiaries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Infrastructure, Operations, Personnel, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Aircraft Leasing: Aircraft leasing to approximately 30 airlines in ~20 countries; manages and owns 70+ aircraft (as of June 2025).
2. Ship Leasing: Ship leasing business entered in 2001; owns 10+ ships (as of June 2025).
3. Solar Power Generation: Solar power generation with DC 622MW total capacity across 102 plants in Japan. Transitioning from FIT (Feed-in Tariff) to FIP (Feed-in Premium) from 2024 onwards.
4. SFR/MFR (Single-Family Residence / Multi-Family Residence): US single-family and multi-family residential rental business; owns 10,100+ detached houses and 11 apartment complexes across 19 US cities.
5. Petroleum Sales (Oka Seki Division): Petroleum product sales through service stations, with a focus on local community service.
6. Agricultural Machinery: Manufacturing and sales of agricultural machinery.
7. Drone Services: Industrial UAV services including civil engineering surveying, inspection work, aerial photography, and drone pilot training/school operations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Yamasa Co LTD operates a diversified Japanese conglomerate (YAMASA GROUP) providing aircraft and ship leasing to global carriers, solar power generation across 102 plants in Japan (622MW DC), single-family and multi-family residential rentals in 19 US cities, petroleum sales and agricultural machinery via the Okaseki division, and industrial drone services including surveying, inspection, aerial photography, and drone pilot training.

Product overview

Yamasa Group is a diversified Japanese conglomerate operating multiple business segments including aviation/ship leasing, solar power generation, US real estate rental (SFR/MFR), petroleum sales, agricultural machinery, and drone services. The portfolio consists of distinct business units rather than a unified platform: Aircraft and Ship Lease (leasing assets internationally), Solar Power Generation (102 plants in Japan via Yamasa Solar Project), US Housing Rental (SFR/MFR across 19 cities), Okaseki Division (oil/agricultural products), and Drone Division (UAV services). Each operates semi-independently without a common software platform connecting them.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• YAMASA SOLAR PROJECT: Solar power generation project covering domestic solar plants across Japan with 102 facilities totaling 622MW DC capacity.
• オカセキ事业部 (Okaseki Division)
• YAMASA ドローン事業部 (Drone Division)

Products and services

• Aircraft Lease Business (航空機リース事業) Leases aircraft to commercial airlines worldwide; manages and owns a fleet of 70+ aircraft. Entered the market in 1986.
• Ship Lease Business (船舶リース事業) Leases ships to maritime operators; owns 10+ vessels. Entered the business in 2001.
• Solar Power Generation (太陽光発電事業 / YAMASA SOLAR PROJECT) Operates 102 solar power plants in Japan with total DC capacity of 622MW, including the 79.5MW Watari plant, supplying power to the grid under Japan's FIT/FIP scheme.
• SFR/MFR Business (米国戸建・集合住宅賃貸事業) Single-family and multi-family residential rental business in the United States; owns 10,100+ detached houses and 11 apartment complexes across 19 US cities. Started in 2018.
• Petroleum Sales Business (オカセキ事業部 / Okaseki Division) Petroleum product sales and service station operations under the Okaseki division, operating under the 'Smile, Safety, Speedy' (3S) motto and also covering agricultural machinery sales.
• Drone Business (ドローン事業部) Industrial UAV (drone) services including drone school operations for national certification, civil engineering surveying, inspection work, and aerial photography for enterprise clients.
• Agricultural Machinery Manufacturing and Sales (農機製造販売) Manufacturing and sales of agricultural machinery, operated as part of the Okaseki division alongside petroleum sales.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• AerCap Holdings: World's largest aircraft lessor, directly comparable to Yamasa's aircraft leasing business. AerCap manages a global portfolio leased to airlines worldwide, operating the same business model as Yamasa's 70+ aircraft aviation leasing franchise established since 1986.
• Air Lease Corporation: US-listed commercial aircraft lessor with a globally diversified airline customer base. Operates the same aircraft leasing model as Yamasa, leasing to airlines across multiple geographies with comparable asset management focus.
• BOC Aviation: Asia-based aircraft lessor owned by Bank of China, leasing to airlines globally. Directly comparable to Yamasa's aviation leasing business, especially relevant given both firms' Asian bases and similar diversified international airline customer portfolios.
• Invitation Homes: Largest US single-family rental operator with over 80,000 homes. Directly comparable to Yamasa's SFR portfolio of 10,100+ US detached houses across 19 cities — same asset class, similar institutional rental operating model, and same US rental housing demand drivers.
• American Homes 4 Rent: Major US single-family rental REIT operating tens of thousands of homes across US Sun Belt and other markets. Directly comparable to Yamasa's SFR business in operating model, tenant base, and US geographic footprint strategy.
• Kubota Corporation: Major Japanese agricultural machinery manufacturer and seller. Directly comparable to Yamasa's Okaseki division agricultural machinery manufacturing and sales business, with overlapping Japanese domestic customer base of farmers.
• Yanmar Holdings: Japanese agricultural machinery and engine manufacturer. Comparable to Yamasa's ag machinery business with similar product categories (tractors, equipment) and Japanese rural customer base, though Yanmar operates at significantly larger scale.
• Terra Drone Corporation: Japan-headquartered industrial drone services company offering surveying, inspection, and aerial data solutions. Directly comparable to Yamasa's drone division, both serving Japanese enterprise clients in civil engineering and infrastructure inspection.

Regional players

• SMBC Aviation Capital: Japan-headquartered aircraft lessor and one of the largest globally. Direct competitor in the same Japanese home market as Yamasa's aircraft leasing business, with comparable airline lessee relationships across Asia and global markets.

Broad incumbents

• Brookfield Renewable Partners: Large-scale global renewable energy operator including solar generation assets. Comparable to Yamasa's 622MW / 102-plant solar portfolio in business model — operating utility-scale solar generation and selling power under regulated tariff frameworks.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/YAMASA_PR

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments1 record

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Yamasa Co LTD