JAPAN

Enforcement

SG Firm Allegedly Swindled JPY 135 Billion in Japan’s Largest Scam

By Nithya Subramanian | 01/03/2024

Sky Premium International has been accused of involvement in foreign exchange margin trading, labeled as an illegitimate “pyramid scheme”, wooing investors through a network of 570 salespeople.

Securities / Derivatives

JPX to Launch New Data Services Platform by End-March

By Editors | 28/02/2024

“J-LAKE” will centralise the management and analysis of financial and capital market data and help expand JPX’s data distribution services.

Sanctions

Russia is Procuring Tank Parts Made in Japan, Taiwan via China

By Editors | 25/02/2024

A Belarusian-owned company in Shenzhen has reportedly been acquiring tank parts from Japanese and Taiwanese manufacturers for use by Russia.

Sanctions

New Sanctions Packages Announced to Mark Ukraine War Anniversary

By Editors | 25/02/2024

The US, EU, Canada, Japan and Australia announced new Russia-related sanctions, including Chinese, Indian, South Korean and Thai companies among their targets.

Crypto / Digital Assets

Japan: Cabinet Approves Bill to Allow VC Investment in Crypto

By Editors | 20/02/2024

The move is expected to enable VC firms to engage in projects that exclusively deal with crypto issuance, such as Web3 startups.

Securities / Derivatives

Japan to Allow Mutual Funds to Invest in Unlisted Shares

By Mark Johnston | 19/02/2024

The move will allow retail investors to buy into early stage startups, which will also gain access to more funding prior to an IPO.

ESG / Sustainability

Japan Becomes First Sovereign to Issue Climate Transition Bonds

By Editors | 15/02/2024

Japan sold JPY 800 billion of 10-year climate transition bonds and plans to sell a further tranche of 5-year bonds later this month.

Enforcement

Major Japan Insurers Directed to Divest ‘Strategic Shareholdings’

By Editors | 14/02/2024

The FSA suspects that the competitive environment may have been distorted by the practice of insurers’ holding shares in client companies.

Market Infrastructure

EU, Japan Sign Protocol on Cross-border Data Flows

By Editors | 01/02/2024

The protocol provides legal certainty that data flows between the EU and Japan will not be hampered by data localisation requirements.