Record-breaking bluefin tuna sells for $3.2m at Tokyo auction
Pacific bluefish tuna is rare and was previously declared an endangered species
January 05, 2026
A rare bluefin tuna fish was sold for $3.2 million dollars at the first auction of 2026 at Tokyo’s Toyosu Fish Market, setting the record for most expensive fish sold.
The massive 535-pound tuna was sold at the new year’s celebratory pre-dawn auction on Monday.
The owner of popular Sushi Zanmai chain, Kiyoshi Kimura, who has won multiple annual auctions took the prized tuna home after bidding highest.
He previously set the record for paying $2.1 million for a fish in 2019.
Kimora said that though he wanted to pay a bit less for the piece, the price shot up even before he realised it.
He added: “It’s in part for good luck. But when I see a good-looking tuna, I cannot resist … I haven’t sampled it yet, but it’s got to be delicious.”
The bluefin tuna fish usually costs around $2.1 million per kilogram. The fish sold at auction was caught off the coast of Oma in northern Japan, a region widely regarded for producing some of the country’s finest tuna.
Pacific bluefish tuna is rare and was previously declared an endangered species; however, conservation efforts proved to be fruitful. Recent reports suggest that its stock is recovering.
