payments

Infcurion to IPO on the TSE Growth Market in October

Norbert Gehrke

22 Sep 2025 — 4 min read

The Tokyo Stock Exchange has approved the initial listing of Infcurion's shares on the Growth Market, with the listing date scheduled for Friday, October 24, 2025.

Infcurion's listing application provides a detailed look into the company that positions itself not as a direct financial service provider, but as a critical "Payments Enabler"—providing the foundational technology for a wide range of businesses to launch and manage their own payment and financial services.

The filing reveals a company at an inflection point: after years of strategic investment and losses, Infcurion has achieved profitability, backed by strong revenue growth and a landmark capital and business alliance with one of Japan's largest financial institutions, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (SMBC Group).

Company Overview & Mission

Founded in May 2006 by CEO Hiroki Maruyama, Infcurion's mission is "to make yesterday's impossibilities possible, starting with payments." The company acts as a key technology partner for everyone from major financial institutions to emerging startups, offering next-generation, cloud-based platforms that are more flexible and cost-effective than the legacy systems that have dominated Japanese finance.

The firm's history tracks the evolution of Japan's fintech scene, from launching one of the first smartphone-based credit card payment services ("Anywhere" in 2011) to establishing a full-fledged Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) platform ("Wallet Station" in 2018).

Business Model: A Three-Pillar Strategy

Infcurion's operations are structured across three synergistic business segments:

Payment Platform Business: This is the company's core growth engine, providing BaaS and embedded finance solutions. Key products include:
- Wallet Station: A platform enabling companies to launch their own branded digital wallet and "Pay" services, including features like P2P transfers, QR code payments, and loyalty points.
- Xard: A next-generation card issuing platform that allows businesses to issue their own branded prepaid, debit, and credit cards under international brands like Visa.
- Winvoice: A B2B invoice payment platform that allows businesses to pay invoices via credit card, extending payment cycles and streamlining accounts payable processes. This is a key focus area tapping into the digitalization of B2B transactions.
Merchant Platform Business: This segment focuses on the acquiring side of payments. Its main product, "Anywhere," provides merchants with payment terminals (both mobile and stationary) and a processing gateway that can handle a wide array of cashless payment methods. As of March 2025, the platform supported over 160,000 active payment terminals.
Consulting Business: Leveraging nearly two decades of expertise, this segment provides strategic consulting on payments and digital finance to large corporations and financial institutions. Crucially, this business acts as a powerful lead generator, often identifying client needs that are then met by the company's platform solutions, creating a virtuous cycle.

The company's revenue is a mix of one-time "flow revenue" (e.g., initial development fees, terminal sales) and recurring "stock revenue" (e.g., monthly platform fees, transaction-based fees). A key strategic goal is to increase the proportion of high-margin, predictable stock revenue.

Financial Performance: The Turn to Profitability

After a period of aggressive "先行投資" (upfront investment) in talent and platform development, Infcurion's financials show a significant turnaround.

For the fiscal year ending March 2025 (FY2024):

Net Sales: ¥7.17 billion (a 22.9% increase year-over-year).
Operating Profit: ¥143 million (a significant recovery from an operating loss of ¥528 million in the previous year).
Net Income: ¥74 million (a turnaround from a net loss of ¥557 million).

The filing notes that while operating cash flow remained negative (△¥336 million), this was primarily due to a substantial increase in accounts receivable linked to the rapid growth of the Winvoice B2B platform—a sign of expanding business rather than operational distress.

Growth Strategy & The SMBC Alliance

Infcurion's growth is fueled by strong market tailwinds, including the Japanese government's push for a cashless society and the global trend of embedded finance. The company's core strategies include:

Expanding the B2B Payments Domain: Winvoice is central to this effort, capitalizing on the nationwide adoption of a new qualified invoice system and the broader push for DX (Digital Transformation) in corporate finance. The company reported a 115.5% increase in B2B Gross Transaction Volume (GTV) in the latest fiscal year.
Enhancing Platform Value: The company is actively investing in new functionalities, particularly leveraging AI for fraud detection, credit scoring, and operational automation on its Xard platform.
The SMBC Group Partnership: In August 2024, Infcurion entered into a capital and business alliance with SMBC Group, which is now its largest shareholder with a combined stake of approximately 25%. This partnership is a cornerstone of its future growth. The two are jointly developing "Trunk," a comprehensive digital financial service for SMEs, for which Infcurion will provide the core payment infrastructure. This alliance provides immense validation, a massive distribution channel, and a significant long-term revenue opportunity.

Identified Risks

The filing outlines several key risks, including:

Technological Disruption: The fast pace of change in the fintech industry requires constant investment to avoid obsolescence.
Competition: As the embedded finance market grows, new and existing players may intensify competition.
Regulatory Changes: The business operates under regulations such as the Payment Services Act. Changes to these laws could impact operations.
System Stability and Security: As a core infrastructure provider, any system downtime or cybersecurity breach could have significant reputational and financial consequences.

Summary for Investors

Infcurion presents itself as a picks-and-shovels play on the broad digitalization of finance in Japan. Its "enabler" model, synergistic business segments, and modern, API-driven technology stack position it well to capture growth across both B2C and B2B markets. The recent achievement of profitability and the strategic alliance with SMBC Group signal that the company is moving from a high-investment phase to a scalable growth phase. Investors will be watching closely to see if Infcurion can leverage this momentum to become the definitive technology backbone for the future of Japanese payments.