mergers & acquisitions
In a report published on July 11, 2025, the Daiwa Institute of Research (DIR) analyzes the significant increase in Tender Offer (TOB) activity in Japan from 2020 to mid-2025, highlighting a new phase in corporate strategy. 1. TOB Activity is Surging to Record Levels The report's primary finding
broker/dealer
The Financial Services Agency (FSA) has compiled a draft partial revision to the Comprehensive Guidelines for Supervision of Financial Instruments Business Operators (and others), and released it for public comment until Monday, August 18, 2025. This amendment is being made in light of the frequent cases of unauthorized access to
Weekly
Welcome to the one hundred twentieth edition of the Japan FinTech Observer. There is a new chief in town. In a management roster published on July 8, the FSA lists Hiroyuki Natori as the Director of the Innovation Promotion Office and Chief FinTech Officer. In addition, the new position of
broker/dealer
Alpaca, a self-clearing broker-dealer and brokerage infrastructure API, intends to acquire WealthKernel, a wealthtech firm specializing in digital investment infrastructure and tax-advantaged products. This strategic acquisition will bring WealthKernel’s UK and EU licensed brokerage infrastructure to Alpaca, supporting their rapid global expansion to achieve its mission of opening financial
Weekly
Welcome to the one hundred nineteenth edition of the Japan FinTech Observer. With the last update on the Shunto wage negotiations behind, and the Upper House elections ahead of us, it is worth taking another look at the situation the average Japanese consumer finds herself in. In September 2022, we
Weekly
Welcome to the one hundred eighteenth edition of the Japan FinTech Observer. We are going to be a bit policy- and white paper-heavy this week. From a macro perspective, we have included the government's "Grand Design and Action Plan for a New Form of Capitalism, 2025 Revised
regulation
The Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission (SESC) has submitted three recommendations for the strengthening of market surveillance functions to the Prime Minister and the Commissioner of the FSA: * Expanding insider trading regulations to cover more types of related parties * Strengthening administrative monetary penalties by increasing amounts and expanding scope to
carbon credit
Carbon credits are expected to play an important role in achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, including providing incentives for decarbonization efforts. With the full-scale operation of the emissions trading system starting from fiscal year 2026, further expansion and diversification of trading is anticipated. Under these circumstances, similar to other financial
Weekly
Welcome to the - exceptionally late - one hundred seventeenth edition of the Japan FinTech Observer. At the Monetary Policy Meeting held last week, the Policy Board of the Bank of Japan decided, by a unanimous vote, to set the following guideline for money market operations for the intermeeting period:
capital markets
SMBC Nikko Securities has published its "Corporate Earnings Outlook for 2025-2026," presenting a comprehensive analysis of the Japanese equity market, centered on the firm's proprietary NIKKO250 index, which covers approximately 75% of the total market capitalization of all listed Japanese companies. The outlook revises its forecast
Weekly
Welcome to the one hundred sixteenth edition of the Japan FinTech Observer. We are back, and so is the Bank of Japan, with their June Monetary Policy Meeting. While a change in the policy rate is not expected, the Bank will update its plan for JGB purchases starting in April
Weekly
Welcome to the one hundred fifteenth edition of the Japan FinTech Observer. Greetings from Lake Biwa! Our annual sake brewery tour & domestic holiday has us hovering around Japan's biggest lake, with our path leading us across Gifu, Shiga, Fukui, and Kyoto prefectures so far. We got to