Tag - corporate-governance

 
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July 05, 2025
 

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CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

A ¥4.7 trillion ($32.4 billion) buyout bid by an entity led by Toyota Motor Chairman Akio Toyoda wasn’t formally on the agenda, but it overshadowed Toyota Industries' annual meeting on Tuesday as shareholders aired their grievances and sought clarity about the proposal.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 10, 2025
Toyota Industries shareholders question buyout at annual meeting
The Toyota group’s plan to privatize Toyota Industries has drawn sharp criticism from investors and analysts since it was announced a week ago.
Kenji Shimizu, the incoming president of Fuji Media Holdings, said in an interview in Tokyo on Monday that the company has yet to finalize its long-term strategy.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 10, 2025
Fuji Media keeps real estate spinoff in play as activists circle
"All options” remain on the table, says incoming President Kenji Shimizu.
A high-rise building in Tokyo's Minato Ward built by Sumitomo Realty & Development
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 9, 2025
Elliott calls for Sumitomo Realty improvements in rare letter
The letter is a rare public move by Elliott, which has kept quiet on most of its Japan investments.
Akihiko Ogino, president and CEO of Daiwa Securities Group, says Japan should press ahead with diversity initiatives as he attends the Tokyo Pride parade in the capital's Shibuya area on Sunday.
BUSINESS
Jun 8, 2025
Top banker vows loyalty to DEI at Tokyo Pride Parade as Trump’s pushback rages
Few Japanese executives have spoken out on U.S. backlash to DEI, though many firms seem to be quietly maintaining their initiatives.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange building in Tokyo. Stock traders are looking for signs of activist holdings in Japanese firms, with more than 80% of Tokyo-listed companies, whose fiscal year ends in March, expected to hold shareholder meetings in the last five days of June.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 6, 2025
Traders scouring annual meeting filings for traces of activist shareholdings
Multiple stocks jumped last week after activist investor Aya Nomura’s name appeared in annual general meeting letters, listed as a stakeholder.
Fuji TV in Tokyo's Minato Ward. The company has also demoted the then-head of programming for his alleged secondary harassment of the victim as he delivered cash and other consolation gifts from the TV idol to her while she was in the hospital.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 6, 2025
Fuji TV to sue former executives over their response to Nakai scandal
The company also demoted the then-head of programming for his alleged secondary harassment of the victim, a former Fuji TV announcer.
If Japan Post loses its general cargo vehicle license, it would be barred from reapplying for a new one for five years.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 5, 2025
Japan Post may lose cargo license over widespread driver check failures
A transport ministry audit in April revealed enough instances of missed checks in the Kanto region to surpass the threshold for license revocation.
A fine of up to ¥30 million will be imposed on companies that dismiss or take disciplinary action against whistleblowers under the revised law.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 5, 2025
Japan enacts bill to penalize revenge against whistleblowers
Under the revised law, individuals who discipline whistleblowers will be subject to a prison term of up to six months or a fine of up to ¥300,000.
Kobayashi Pharmaceutical President Norikazu Toyoda in Osaka on May 30
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 4, 2025
Kobayashi Pharmaceutical vows never to repeat health crisis
In March 2024, the drugmaker, based in Osaka, announced that it had received a series of reports about such symptoms as kidney disease from users of its supplements.
Akio Toyoda’s involvement in the $33 billion buyout of Toyota Industries signals a potential corporate comeback, and that’s a good thing despite criticism.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 4, 2025
For Toyota, more Akio Toyoda would be a good thing
This opposition is nonsensical. Akio turned Toyota into the biggest automaker in the world during a period of intense industry change.
Toyota group companies could establish a new holding company to privatize Toyota Industries.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 3, 2025
Toyota Industries receives $33 billion buyout offer from group companies
The deal would be in line with government efforts to encourage big companies to unwind cross-held shares with subsidiaries and other businesses.
The cover-up is believed to have started in 2004 or even earlier, according to the government's Tohoku Local Finance Bureau and the Financial Services Agency.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 29, 2025
Japan lender receives business improvement order following cover-up
Former executives of the cooperative concealed fraudulent corporate loans, including through the accounts of depositors opened without their consent.
James Rosewald, co-founder of Dalton Investments, speaks during an interview at the company's office in Tokyo on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 28, 2025
Dalton connects with activist investor-linked fund to pressure Fuji Media
Dalton is trying to pressure Fuji Media after the broadcaster earlier this month spurned the fund’s proposal for 12 new directors, including SBI Holdings' Yoshitaka Kitao.
A shareholder of Nomura Holdings has made a proposal seeking to change the company’s name to Nomura Securities Group.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 28, 2025
Nomura faces rare vote on shareholder's proposal of a name change
The proposal seeks to change the company’s name to Nomura Securities Group, which its board opposes.
A Skechers store in Times Square in New York. The company has announced plans to sell to investment firm 3G Capital in a take-private deal for about $9.4 billion.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 28, 2025
Retailers pummeled by Trump's trade war entertain more 'take-private' offers
Such companies have been hard-hit by rapidly shifting tariff announcements and are frustrated with an inability to provide earnings guidance.
People head into a Seven & I Holdings shareholders meeting on Tuesday in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 27, 2025
Seven & I shareholders back new board to deal with takeover proposal
Investors appear to be willing to see what happens with the radical overhaul, which the Japanese retailer had pledged to counter Couche-Tard’s ¥7.39 trillion approach.
Tsuruha shareholders approved a merger plan with Welcia, which will result in an effective acquisition by supermarket chain Aeon.
BUSINESS
May 26, 2025
Tsuruha shareholders approve future merger with rival drugstore Welcia
Tsuruha, based in Sapporo, has announced it will integrate its operations with Welcia, the biggest force within the Japanese pharmacy industry, in December.
An Aeon store in Osaka. Aeon, the country’s largest supermarket chain operator, last month said it will launch a tender offer to make Tsuruha a consolidated subsidiary at ¥11,400 per share.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 23, 2025
Tsuruha shareholders to vote on criticized Aeon merger plan
The chorus reflects rising shareholder activism in Japan in recent years as the country’s governance reforms embolden investors.
A third-party committee set up by Fuji Television Network said in a statement Thursday that its recognition of sexual violence was based on the World Health Organization's definition because Fuji TV and its parent, Fuji Media Holdings, needed to fulfill their accountability to global shareholders.
JAPAN / Media
May 23, 2025
Fuji TV panel defends conclusion of 'sexual violence' by Nakai
The committee rejected the request from Nakai's lawyer to disclose interview records and other evidence, claiming that it would undermine its independence and neutrality.
Institutional Shareholder Services backed the reappointment of Chairman Akio Toyoda to Toyota’s board, reversing its position from a year ago.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 23, 2025
ISS reverses stance and backs Toyota chief's reappointment
"There are no particular concerns about the nominee,” Institutional Shareholder Services said of Akio Toyoda in a report Thursday.
A prophesied disaster (likely) won’t strike Japan this weekend
A viral manga prediction of a July 5 disaster has gripped Japan with anxiety and triggered an economic impact, but experts warn that while such dates are unreliable, the threat of a massive earthquake remains real. 
Magnitude 5.5 earthquake jars Tokara Islands amid flurry of seismic activity
A strong quake struck off the Tokara Islands on Thursday afternoon, with the island chain having recorded around 1,000 earthquakes since a burst of seismic activity first began on June 21.
Japan to require flight passengers to keep power banks within sight
The transport ministry has announced new regulations requiring flight passengers to keep power banks within sight to mitigate fire risks while on board planes.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Residents of Tokara Islands begin evacuation as seismic swarm continues
Details about evacuations from Akuseki Island, located in the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecture, is seen written on a whiteboard in the city of Kagoshima on Thursday.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Flag football facing challenges and opportunities ahead
Japan’s women’s flag football team at the 2025 International Bowl in Los Angeles in June. The sport is enjoying continued growth in the country.
From Hokusai’s Great Wave, shinkansen to One Piece: a cultural treasure box for Lego Japan
Michael Ebbesen, general manager of Lego Japan, says Lego bricks based on Japanese culture have a rich global appeal and are sellable around the world.
With farmed fish, RelationFish swims against the tide in fine dining
Chef Hideaki Matsuo (middle) and the staff of Oseto Suisan Fisheries prepare to check on their sustainably farmed fish.
As Southeast Asia heats up, a Japanese cooling giant sees a major opportunity
An employee of Daikin Cambodia explains the use of different tools during an air conditioner installation training session in Phnom Penh. Daikin is one of Japan’s oldest air conditioning companies, but as Japan’s population falls, the firm is keying in on overseas growth.

Podcast

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

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Muji has been sustainable from the beginning
Muji has been sustainable from the beginning

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