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July 12, 2026
 

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Kazuaki Nagata

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Kazuaki Nagata
East Japan Railway displays a concept graphic for its Suica Renaissance strategy at the Mass-Trans Innovation Japan event last month at Makuhari Messe in Chiba Prefecture.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 21, 2025
Teppay is key to JR East’s growth strategy as Suica e-money loses ground
Data about shopping and travel habits are essential for the company’s real estate and urban development businesses.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda, speaking on Friday after the policy board announcement, said that growth and price data appear to be on track to meet central bank forecasts.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 19, 2025
BOJ takes rates to a 30-year high; 10-year Japanese government bond breaks 2% 
Weak yen might have convinced the central bank that now is the time to make a move.
SBI Holdings subsidiary Shinsei Trust and Banking is set to issue a yen-based stablecoin next year.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 16, 2025
Japan’s first bank-backed yen-based stablecoin could be available by June 2026
The hope is that it will be used for the settlement of payments locally and globally
Keio University President Kohei Ito (left) and OpenAI Chief Strategy Officer Jason Kwon sign a memorandum of understanding on Tuesday in Tokyo.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 10, 2025
Keio and OpenAI sign MOU on integration of AI into university
The maker of ChatGPT will work closely with the Japanese institution on a range of projects.
A magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck off eastern Aomori Prefecture around 11:15 p.m. Monday.
JAPAN
Dec 9, 2025
Tsunami warnings lifted after M7.5 quake rocks northeastern Japan
The Japan Meteorological Agency registered a seismic intensity of upper-6 on the Japanese scale in the city of Hachinohe, Aomori Prefecture.
The Cabinet is expected to submit an extra budget bill to finance the package to parliament, which is in session until Dec. 17.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 21, 2025
¥21.3 trillion stimulus package approved by Cabinet
Markets have been volatile amid concern about the plan, which includes ¥17.7 trillion of spending, ¥2.7 trillion in tax breaks and ¥900 billion in special account spending.
Bernard Laurendeau, chief of Enkopa Lab Japan, in Tokyo last month
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 19, 2025
Japanese companies advised to change mindset about investment in Africa
They are being told to take action now or risk missing out on big opportunities.
Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is reportedly set to propose a stimulus package of about ¥17 trillion.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 18, 2025
Extra-big extra budget pushed by some Japanese lawmakers
Bonds and stocks sink as they ask for an additional $50 billion and say debt might be the answer.
Noritaka Okabe, CEO of JPYC, acknowledges a number of potential risks related to stablecoins.
BUSINESS / Tech
Nov 14, 2025
Stablecoins: Boring goes big, and now in Japan
They are designed not to fluctuate in value, and that’s precisely what makes them attractive.
Mobile Suica is being improved so that it is more useful in an increasingly cashless society.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 12, 2025
Penguin-less Suica to take on PayPay in payments with QR codes and higher limits
Balance limits will go from ¥20,000 on the current e-money system to ¥300,000.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda speaks after the October rate-setting meeting, where the policy rate was kept at 0.5%.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 10, 2025
Bank of Japan signals it’s inclined to increase rates, with the usual caveats
The central bank will make the move as long as wages keep moving up at a healthy pace, and there are no big surprises.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks to a panel on promoting economic security in Japan on Friday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 7, 2025
Takaichi calls for the updating of Japan’s economic security law
The prime minister argues that the geopolitical situation has changed and economic threats are increasing.
Achal Khare, former managing director at India’s National High Speed Rail Corporation, gives a presentation during the IHRA Forum 2025 in Tokyo on Oct. 23.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 6, 2025
High-speed rail is expensive and difficult, but seen as a key to growth
Train fanatic and former Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba praised shinkansen technology at a forum hosted by the International High-speed Rail Association.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi delivers her first policy speech in parliament, on Oct. 24, 2025.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 31, 2025
Takaichi might be more of a supply-sider than a Keynesian
It’s not all about Abenomics, one economist argues.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda said on Thursday that the central bank has no timeline in mind for the next rate increase.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 30, 2025
BOJ keeps policy rate at 0.5% as lack of U.S. data makes forecasting difficult
The central bank stuck to a wait-and-see approach owing to continued uncertainty.
BYD Auto Japan President Atsuki Tofukuji unveils the Racco at the Japan Mobility Show in Tokyo on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 29, 2025
At Japan Mobility Show, BYD gears up to conquer Japan’s EV market
The Chinese EV manufacturer’s Racco minivehicle is its first model exclusively made for a specific market.
Some Bank of Japan policy board members have started to dissent from the wait-and-see approach of their colleagues.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 28, 2025
Bank of Japan expected to sit this one out and keep benchmark rate at 0.5%
Even though inflation remains high, so too does uncertainty.
Noritaka Okabe, head of Japanese startup JPYC, at a news conference for the first yen stablecoin in Tokyo on Monday
BUSINESS / Tech
Oct 27, 2025
JPYC, world’s first yen stablecoin, is issued
One-second transfers costing less than ¥1 could become a reality.
Liberal Democratic Party President Sanae Takaichi at the National Diet Building in Tokyo on Monday
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 20, 2025
Takaichi government will likely spend less than expected
The Japan Innovation Party, the Liberal Democratic Party’s new coalition partner, could take the edge off some original policy priorities.
Japan National Stadium will be called the MUFG Stadium from 2026 to 2030.
MORE SPORTS
Oct 15, 2025
MUFG buys Japan National Stadium naming rights for five years 
The financial services company anticipates opportunities from the investment.
China’s demand for Soviet-style apartments shows limits to revival
Apartments built during a Soviet Union-inspired construction drive in the 1970s and 1980s tend to suffer from poor insulation and outdated plumbing, but they are seeing a revival in interest due to their attractive locations.
Japanese scientists identify neural mechanism that may explain why we dislike people
The aggressive mouse (left) used in the experiment and a mouse defending itself
Japanese payment processor’s collapse hits banks and restaurants
Zentoshin served around 200,000 shops, many of which rely on early payments to maintain cash flow, raising concerns over their financial stability following the disruption.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
Lenders seek $700 million after Japanese payments firm’s collapse
The financial failure of Osaka-based Zentoshin has left 63 creditors with claims totaling ¥115.16 billion, according to Tokyo Shoko Research.
Japan’s largest exhibition of women photographers rights a wrong in cultural history
Miwa Yanagi’s “Elevator Girl House” series skewers the superficiality of gender roles through staged images.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
‘Princess Mononoke’ comes alive in Super Kabuki staging
The “Princess Mononoke” adaptation was created under Shochiku’s Super Kabuki initiative, a modern form of kabuki with more technology in staging and open to pop culture collaborations.
The beating heart inside ‘Human Vapor’
Different forms of love and connection form the emotional backbone of Netflix’s “Human Vapor,” says actor Shun Oguri, who plays troubled detective Kenji Okamoto.
Japan bets on character IP to drive global growth
Born on social media platforms in 2022, Opanchu Usagi has become a major hit, especially among Generation Z.

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