Project Minerva: Rembrandt IPO with Rembit / Rembitcoin
Thomas S. Kaplan moves to fractionalise the Leiden Collection. Project Minerva would take Rembrandt public—think shares, tickers, and a crowdsurge around Old Masters.
Thomas Kaplan is preparing to do something no collector has dared: put Rembrandt on the stock exchange. The billionaire behind the Leiden Collection, which holds 17 Rembrandts and what may be Vermeer’s final canvas, is engineering a plan to “fractionalise” the trove into publicly traded shares. He calls it Project Minerva.
For two decades, Kaplan and his wife Daphne built the Leiden Collection at speed, then sent it on a diplomatic world tour—from the Louvre to Shanghai to Abu Dhabi. Now, with his children uninterested in inheriting the works, Kaplan is pivoting. He insists this isn’t just succession planning—it’s evangelism. If millions can claim a sliver of Rembrandt, he argues, millions will defend his place in culture.
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The structure is still fluid. Tokens branded as “Rembit” or “Rembitcoin,” once trademarked by Kaplan, may surface as part of the offering. His family intends to keep control, positioning the deal as both investment vehicle and permanent lending library.
Kaplan built his fortune on scarce assets like silver and gold. He frames Old Masters the same way: finite, recognisable, indelible brands. “In every top ten list, you’ll find Rembrandt and Vermeer,” he says. “I own both franchises.”
If he succeeds, the public markets will gain a new asset class: Rembrandt, ticker symbol TBD. And with it, a centuries-old question will sharpen—can art survive once it is sliced into shares?
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