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December 04, 2024
 

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Hideki Suzuki
Itochu has tapped Daiwa Securities Group and the founding Ito family has hired SMBC Nikko Securities as financial advisers for their ¥9 trillion ($58.4 billion) proposal to take Seven & I Holdings private, people with knowledge of the matter have said.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 25, 2024
Nomura, Daiwa and other advisers win coveted Seven & I buyout roles
The multitude of financial advisers reflects the complexity of any potential buyout, as well as the lucrative fees if consummated.
Mizuho Financial CEO Masahiro Kihara during a news conference in Tokyo on Nov. 14
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 14, 2024
Japan’s biggest banks raise profit goals, unveil buybacks
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group and Mizuho Financial Group now project a combined ¥3.7 trillion ($24 billion) in profit this fiscal year.
For Seven Bank, greater independence from its parent Seven & I Holdings could lead to new growth opportunities.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 11, 2024
Seven Bank seeks to expand cash-machine network beyond 7-Elevens
Deconsolidation from Seven & I resulting from a reduction of its stake in Seven Bank would make such a scenario more possible.
Yasushi Itagaki, head of MUFG’s global commercial banking business, says the banking group aims to push up its buyouts and investment in India, and increase annual returns from them to 20% in 10 years.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 11, 2024
MUFG seeks acquisitions in India to drive growth, targeting 20% returns
Japan's largest lender is competing with a slew of global peers to expand in the world’s fastest-growing major economy.
Seven & I Holdings' 46% stake in Seven Bank could raise around ¥30 billion by the end of the current fiscal year in February.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 6, 2024
Seven & I is said to plan reducing stake in banking unit to 38%
The retailer’s 46% stake in Seven Bank could raise around ¥30 billion by the end of the current fiscal year in February.
Yokohama-based Fuji Soft held a board meeting on Friday and decided to stick with KKR’s tender for its shares despite receiving a higher bid from Bain Capital.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 20, 2024
Fuji Soft sticks with KKR despite higher takeover offer from Bain
The special committee advising Fuji Soft said it would be difficult for Bain to take the company private, according to a statement.
To lessen the impact from any shocks, including a U.S. economic slump, Mizuho has been buying Treasurys and other assets that are easier to sell or hedge against price falls.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 9, 2024
Mizuho choosing liquid assets, bracing for risk of failed U.S. soft landing
Market participants appear overconfident that U.S. policymakers will be able to tame inflation without causing a recession, the bank's co-head of global markets has said.
For years, Seven & I has faced calls from investors to focus more on its convenience-store business.
BUSINESS
Oct 3, 2024
7-Eleven owner seeking to sell off part of stake in banking unit
The sale of part of its stake in Seven Bank would intend to show Seven & I Holdings is willing to focus more on its core 7-Eleven business.
Masahiko Kato, president and chief executive officer of Mizuho Bank
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 3, 2024
Mizuho seeks to back more strategic deals by Japan’s mid-caps
Though companies such as automakers grab the attention of global investors, smaller firms dominate in terms of the number of companies in Japan.
Japan's banks are benefiting from the Bank of Japan's policy shift and strong loan demand among their corporate clients.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 15, 2024
Japan’s biggest banks forecast record profits as rates rise
The banks are benefiting from an earnings boost following the Bank of Japan’s policy shift in March.
Kioxia Holdings plans to go public on the Tokyo Stock Exchange as early as October.
BUSINESS
Apr 16, 2024
Kioxia plans to list as early as October as merger talks stall
Kioxia faces a June deadline to refinance as much as ¥900 billion worth of loans, and a public listing will help its negotiations with banks.
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group said it is already managing to enhance its tolerance to an anticipated rise in yen interest rates.
BUSINESS / Markets
Mar 6, 2024
Japan’s biggest bank readies for BOJ shift on rate policy within weeks
Hiroyuki Seki, head of global markets business at Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, predicts that the BOJ will raise rates not once but twice by October.
Toru Nakashima, CEO of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, says he is considering an expansion of the bank’s alliance with Jefferies Financial Group into Asia.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 27, 2024
Sumitomo Mitsui may expand Jefferies pact into Asia amid focus overseas
The partners won more than 30 deals since expanding their tie-up last year, in which Sumitomo Mitsui agreed to triple its stake in the U.S. bank.
Noriyuki Sato, head of asset management at Mizuho Financial Group, says the bank plans to ramp up its expansion into private markets.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 18, 2024
Mizuho considers U.S. deal to supercharge private markets growth
The lender’s $460 billion money-management arm is considering buying a stake in a U.S. or European firm specializing in alternative investments.
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group’s CEO Jun Ohta died Saturday. He was 65.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 27, 2023
Sumitomo Mitsui CEO Jun Ohta, who pushed Asia expansion, dies at 65
Ohta’s well-being attracted attention when he missed an earnings briefing earlier this month, with the bank citing health reasons.
A Tsuruha Holdings store in Otaru, Hokkaido. The drug store chain is considering selling the entire company for about $4 billion or even more, sources said.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 15, 2023
Japan’s Tsuruha weighs sale after proxy battle with Oasis
The company is working with an adviser on the potential transaction and has reached out to some private equity firms to gauge their interest.
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group announced a $2.6 billion share buyback program after fiscal second-quarter profit tripled.
BUSINESS
Nov 14, 2023
Japan’s largest banks to buy back shares after profits soar
Japan’s biggest banks have unveiled plans to boost shareholder returns after posting record first-half profits, thanks in part to a cheaper yen.
Mizuho Financial Group will raise its stake in Rakuten Securities to nearly 50%.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 9, 2023
Mizuho said to raise Rakuten Securities stake to almost 50%
The banking group plans to increase its investment in Rakuten’s online securities arm, which isn’t proceeding with an initial public offering for now.
Notification of a system glitch is posted at MUFG Bank's Ueno branch in Tokyo's Taito Ward on Oct. 10.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 18, 2023
Compensation to be given over Japan payments clearing system glitch
Zengin-Net, the system’s operator, said member banks will reimburse customers for extra fees and penalties incurred.
Kioxia's Kitakami plant in Kitakami, Iwate Prefecture. Western Digital and Kioxia initially aimed to reach a decision on a merger in August, but discussions have dragged on as the companies tried to iron out details.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 20, 2023
Banks prepare ¥2 trillion funds for Kioxia-Western Digital merger
The moves towards a refinancing commitment would mark a step forward in the merger, which has faced months of delays.
Japan’s 2024 buzzword of the year urges a reevaluation of past norms
Sadao Abe, who played the role of a time-traveling Showa Era teacher transported to present day in a popular TV drama, receives the 2024 buzzword of the year award for the word "futehodo," the nickname of the series.
Princess Aiko, only child of emperor, turns 23
Princess Aiko on Nov. 22 ahead of her 23rd birthday on Sunday at the Imperial Palace
Ishiba questioned on political reform, social issues and the economy
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks in the Lower House in Tokyo on Monday.
Nearly 90% in Japan and China have negative views of other
Chinese people's sentiment toward Japan is believed to be impacted by their use of social media platforms such as Weibo and Douyin, as well as whether they have visited Japan.
Bear that attacked Akita supermarket employee captured
A brown bear in Hokkaido. In the city of Akita, a bear that attacked a supermarket employee over the weekend was captured in a box trap on Monday morning.
Can Japan's scientific community rebound from a Nobel nosedive?
The National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation in Tokyo is a popular place to foster curiosity in the natural sciences.
Europe eyes 'boots on the ground' in Ukraine as possible peace deal option
A serviceman with the Ukrainian Army's 24th mechanized brigade fires a machine gun during an exercise, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in the country's Donetsk region on Friday.
Seven strangers and an algorithm: Can this new dinner app help you make friends?
Timeleft uses an algorithm to match its users with five or six strangers in an effort to prompt “human connection” over dinner at a restaurant. It determines the attendees with the help of a simple personality quiz available when you sign up for the service. 
Don’t worry, you can still use your Japan health insurance card — for now
A My Number card reader at a pediatric clinic in Tokyo. While the government will stop issuing new health insurance cards on Monday, most people will remain unaffected by the move in the short term as existing health insurance cards can still be used for another year.
The Geisha bean is the leading lady of Tokyo's coffee scene
Discovered in the 1930s, the Geisha coffee plant came to worldwide fame in the early 2000s and now represents some of the best coffee on the planet — Tokyo's top cafes included.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation in Tokyo is a popular place to foster curiosity in the natural sciences.
Can Japan's scientific community rebound from a Nobel nosedive?
By Tomoko Otake

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