for 10 years. In addition, a report must be prepared for each business year and submitted to the authorities with a balance sheet and profit and loss statement (Article 52-61-12 and Article 52-61-13 of the Banking Act).
A financial service intermediary business operator that acts as an intermediary for services such as deposits, insurance, securities transactions, and money lending, among others, may conduct this business by submitting a notification without registration for “Electronic Payment Services”. However, this is only possible if the intermediary conducts financial services using information and communication technology, and if other certain requirements are met (Art. 12, Art. 18, paras. 1 and 3, Act on Provision of Financial Services and the Development of the Accessible Environment Thereto).
Additional comments regarding the legal situation for asset and portfolio management services or what FinTechs must be aware of in this business area
It should be noted that if an electronic payment services business is commissioned by a bank or receives economic consideration from a bank, it is subject to regulations as a bank agency services.
If asset and portfolio management services include services related to investment advice, investment management, or investments (including the sale and purchase of securities in the market), then a business operator is required to obtain registration under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act.
Economic conditions
Market size for asset and portfolio management services and biggest companies in this business area
According to the research by a private research company in 2023, the market size of asset management applications was estimated to be approximately 3.3 billion yen as of 2021, and is expected to reach 13 billion yen by 2027. The largest company in this business is Money Forward ME with more than 15 million users of the service (as of November 2023).
Additional comments regarding the economic situation for asset and portfolio management services or what FinTech’s must be aware of in this business area
The asset management application "Money Forward" provides more than 2,600 financial-related services, including those related to financial institutions, credit cards, online shopping, and pensions. Once an account is registered, it automatically retrieves the relevant bank account statement and balance, and with this creates a household account book. Zaim, which is one of the biggest companies in this business and is also able to connect to online financial accounts, also offers a service that automatically reads items and amounts when paper receipts are photographed with a smartphone camera.