The Abrasus Japanese Wallet Review

As a cash-centric society Japanese businesses are still yet to integrate cashless payment systems into daily life. Cash is still king and it doesn’t seem like that’s going to change anytime soon. Because of this, you tend to find trends in Japanese wallets – and what men carry with them on a daily basis – different from the West. 

Meet the Abrasus wallet. A hefty tri-fold style wallet which has about as many features as a Tesla. From storing many cards, to being able to store Japanese’s large banknotes (some of the largest in size in the world) the Abrasus is not shy with its large size.

Look & Design

The Abrasus wallet feels very much like a big slab of leather. To the touch, the leather feels as if it has a glossy coat over the top which gives a very smooth – yet slightly plasticky feel to the wallet. It does feel like fake faux leather but apparently the wallet is made from top-grain leather (although I am skeptical as to if this is true). I’d be interested to see how this wallet fairs over prolonged use (say 2 years) and if ‘wearing it in’ loosens up the leather and gives it a more premium feel.

Another off thing about this wallet is its shape. When completely closed the wallet is square in dimensions. Most wallets are rectangular in shape to provide a better fit in the pocket and I was curious to see if the Abrasus was more noticeable (bulky) in the pocket as a result. After some use with different pants (skinny jeans hype), I found the shape to be satisfactory at best. It wasn’t as bad as I thought but the wallet was still more noticeable in the pocket than most wallets. I don’t know if this was because of the square dimensions or simply because this wallet is larger than most.

Along with its leather, the wallet also has some metal parts, mainly in the coin pouch section of the wallet to secure it in place. This is in the typical ‘button’ style which is effective although it doesn’t exactly give a premium look. Overall I’m not enamored by the Look or feel of the Abrasus wallet. It looks a little clumsy, cluttered and the material still raises questions if it actually is full-grain leather. 

Functionality & Utility 

As you’d probably expect the Abrasus wallet is designed for its functionality and the sheer amount of items you can store in it. Once unfolded from its tri-fold design the wallet is split into 3 distinct sections. The first is the note area where you store your notes lengthways in an actually really nice and effective way. The wallet can store about 15 notes and is large enough to accommodate larger sized currencies like the Euro. Also in this top section is a secret area concealed under a small tab of leather. This is meant for storing other small items such as keys but could also be used for excess coins. 

The middle section of the tri-fold is used to store your bank cards. Cards are stacked upon each other and stored under a tight piece of leather. I found the wallet could only store around 5 cards before it becomes increasingly difficult to access. The final and third section of the wallet is the large pouch for storing any coins you may have. Abrasus says it has enough room for approximately 15 coins but they are talking about the Yen and this will obviously differ depending on the size of the coins in your country. This is actually my favorite part of the wallet because it works well in the overall design of the Abrasus, has a large capacity and is very secure.

Price Tag

It took me by surprise when I first saw the price tag of the Abrasus. Coming in at a staggering $159.00 I was shocked they could even think this was a fair price. Sure, the wallet is functional but the actual look and feel leave a lot to the imagination and I could name at least 10 other wallets better than the Abrasus at a lower price tag.

Final Verdict

The Abarasus is a highly unusual Japanese wallet with most of its emphasis on the wallet’s functional aspect as opposed to the design. The wallet serves as a wallet for people who carry lots on a daily basis including many cards, banknotes, and coins. But the price tag is ridiculous and I can’t get over how they think they can charge this sort of price for what you get.  As mentioned, check out some of our reviews of other bi-folds or tri-folds if you want great functionality and they’ll always be less money than the Abrasus.