EBC Newsletter – June 17, 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic drastically changed the communication behaviour of billions of people worldwide. Digital communication is the big winner of the crisis. Even if we already used webinars or web meetings before, they have become a normal part of our daily professional – and personal – lives.

In this Newsletter, we chose to advertise two interesting webinars:

• The re-entry ban to Japan for non-Japanese nationals is still a problem for many businesses. Following the publication of our statement on this issue on May 15^th, the EBC is organizing a webinar on June 19^th. If you are interested, please have a look at the program and register!
• The EU and Japan are offering an “EU-Japan Webinar Series on COVID-19” from June to September: a total of 9 webinars will be held to inform and exchange views about the EU and Japan’s responses to COVID-19, as well as to provide ideas for enhancing EU-Japan cooperation in this new context. Tomorrow, the webinar will focus on “COVID-19 and Business”.
• We also share with you two useful contacts if you are a foreign company interested in a helpline for COVID-19 related issues or if you are a foreign financial company looking for contacts in Japan.

We wish you a good reading and hope you stay positive and healthy during this difficult time.

Valerie Moschetti
EBC Chief Operating Officer

Japan currently has a ban on the entry of non-Japanese nationals who have visited, for instance, Europe within 14 days prior to entering Japan. While the EU has similar restrictions, it exempts legal residents of Europe, independent of nationality, meaning that Japanese nationals residing in the EU can enter.

Not being able to re-enter Japan puts great strain on foreigners working in Japan and companies, as some of their employees cannot leave Japan and come back, except in special circumstances. On May 15, the European Business Council in Japan (EBC) issued a statement on the limitations for non-Japanese nationals to re-enter Japan as it believes there is no rational and scientific reason for treating residents differently based on nationality.

In this EBC Briefing (webinar), we will get an overview of the current situation. We will also hear from the European private sector pointing out damages to businesses and to the Japanese economy.

For further details, please read the detailed program.

Date: Friday, June 19 2020
Time: 5:00pm-6:30pm
To register, please send an email to: [email protected]

If you have questions prior to the webinar, kindly send them when you register.

Restarting the economy, particularly after the impact of COVID-19 on business and employment, is a common challenge for European and Japanese authorities.

In this webinar, European and Japanese experts from both the public and the private sector will share experiences on responding to the crisis from managing liquidity to managing disrupted supply chains and teleworking staff.

The speakers will also share their views about projections and trends affecting business and SMEs after the outbreak of the pandemic, including how to assess risks, build resilience and shape business models to better withstand future crises.

The webinar will be in Japanese and English (simultaneous interpretation will be provided).

Date: Thursday, June 18 2020
Time: 4:30pm-6:00pm
Webinar registration on this link

Consultations can be done in English, Japanese, and Chinese
https://www.jetro.go.jp/en/invest/covid-19/helpline.html
Phone number:
+81 (0)3-6628-7261 (Japanese)
+81 (0)3 6628-7264 (English)
+81 (0)3-6633-6946 (Chinese)
Opening hours: 9am – 6pm (weekdays)

In order to enforce the program, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government organized a community called “Tokyo FiNexus” on LinkedIn, which Pasona is commissioned to manage.

If you are a European company in the financial sector willing to connect with Japanese stakeholders and FinTech startups that have successfully made inroads into Tokyo, please visit these websites!

https://www.linkedin.com/in/tokyo-finexus-594736186/
https://tokyofinexus.peatix.com/