author

 
 

Meta

Takashi Nakamichi
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 18, 2020
Bank of Japan refuses trader requests to work from home
The central bank doesn't allow home computers to connect to its network for conducting asset purchases, raising concerns at financial firms as virus cases in Tokyo surge.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 21, 2020
Nomura launches drive to tempt retail customers from commission to fees
'A lot of people say we could face resistance in Japan because many may prefer transaction-based payment,” said Chie Toriumi, a senior managing director.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 7, 2020
Nomura to rethink office space as new CEO seeks deeper cuts
Nomura Holdings Inc.’s use of office space is part of a sweeping review ordered up by its new chief executive as the brokerage looks to shave costs in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 28, 2020
Nomura's new CEO faces tough initiation juggling overhaul and virus
It was supposed to be a smooth transition for Nomura Holdings Inc.'s new boss. Then the coronavirus struck.
BUSINESS
Dec 26, 2019
Daiwa to expand REIT business as low rates persist
Daiwa Securities Group Inc. is expanding its real estate investment trust business as low interest rates continue to drive investors into domestic property funds.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 3, 2019
Nomura's next CEO stresses 'urgency' in cementing overhaul
Nomura Holdings Inc. named Kentaro Okuda as its new chief executive officer, turning to a 32-year company veteran to help cement a sweeping overhaul of its global operations and reverse a slump at home.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 4, 2019
Anime, manga, pro-wrestling? Tokyo firm hopes Japan's next big cultural export comes from inside the ring
If one Japanese business has its way, wrestlers will be the next hit entertainment export from the country that introduced the world to Hello Kitty and animation sci-fi films such as "Akira."
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 22, 2019
Nomura Holdings CEO Koji Nagai vows to cut costs and keep struggling brokerage independent
Nomura Holdings Inc.'s chief executive vowed to keep Japan's biggest brokerage independent and quickly implement his latest turnaround plan as a slumping share price puts the question of a potential merger in focus.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 1, 2019
Bank of Japan should avoid pushing rates further below zero, head of lenders' association says
The new head of the nation's main banking lobby is warning the Bank of Japan against deepening negative interest rates, signaling that such a move could spur risky investment and put further pressure on lenders' profits.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 26, 2018
Japan's commercial lenders lobby BOJ to stop buying corporate bonds at negative rates
Commercial lenders are privately complaining to the central bank about its purchases of corporate bonds at negative interest rates and are asking it to stop the practice, according to people familiar with the matter.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 15, 2018
Japanese bond investors ponder a future SoftBank without Masayoshi Son
Masayoshi Son is fond of talking about his 300-year vision for SoftBank Group Corp., but some Japanese bond investors are already pondering an earlier event — what will the technology giant be like without its founder?
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 18, 2018
Bank of Japan likely to enjoy greater policy freedom if Abe quits, says former board member Kiuchi
The Bank of Japan will likely find it easier to make its inflation target less binding if recent scandals throw Prime Minister Shinzo Abe from power, according to Takahide Kiuchi, a former board member at the central bank.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
Feb 19, 2018
SoftBank's IPO plan raises doubts about guarantees on bonds worth $33 billion
Billionaire Masayoshi Son's plan to list his cash-cow telecom business is raising concern among observers that the company might stop guaranteeing the debt of its parent, SoftBank Group Corp., worsening the quality of its credit.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 11, 2017
SoftBank's Son remains confident over Saudi investment in Vision Fund amid crackdown
Billionaire Masayoshi Son may be getting closer to achieving his dream of making SoftBank Group Corp. the world's biggest investor in technologies, thanks in part to the main patron of Son's $100 billion (¥11.3 trillion) investment plan — Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Sep 28, 2017
Japan's flops turning bond market stars amid hunt for higher yields
Japan's yield-hungry investors are helping turn companies that were once bond-market pariahs into stars.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 30, 2017
Yasumitsu Shigeta rekindles markets' love for resurgent Hikari Tsushin
Before earnings disasters caused Hikari Tsushin Inc. shares to sink 99 percent in 2000, the firm's founder and chairman, Yasumitsu Shigeta, was once among the world's richest people. Almost two decades later some investors are looking again at the Japanese company, and recent market moves suggest they...

Longform

Professional cleaner Hirofumi Sakurai takes a moment to appreciate some photographs in a Gotanda apartment whose occupant died alone.
The last cleanup: Life and death in a lonely Japan