Expansion of Japan’s role as an international financial centre

The EBC recognises and appreciates that the FSA established Financial Market Entry Office in January 2021 in order to simplify market entry procedure. A dedicated website has also been launched, in addition to the revised Cabinet Office Order to amend the Regulation for Enforcement of the Insurance Business Act. The EBC also appreciates the FSA’s tremendous efforts to improve provisions of English material in recent years. The EBC believes simplification of procedures and provision of English materials support foreign entities not only to enter Japan’s market, but also retain the business in Japan. In addition, there have been recent proposals to create a special zone for asset management in which administrative procedures can be conducted  in English, in order to facilitate the entry of foreign asset managers and others into Japan. The ECB hopes that these developments will have a positive impact on the entry of foreign insurance companies. The ECB is also aware that regulations on asset owners will be considered, but since insurance companies are also asset owners, the ECB will take care to ensure that such regulations do not have a negative impact.