BDO LLP | INTERNATIONAL TECH HUBS THIRD EDITION
12
customers, Japanese banks, investor funds, different service providers, you need to be in it for the long haul. And that’s why Japanese companies provide grants. TAX AND ACCOUNTING PARTICULARITIES The tax standards are very simple in Japan, unlike the US and other parts of the world. The Japanese tax rules are fairly strict, and tax tends to be higher than in nearby countries. However, the rules are very fair and only those companies who make profits pay tax. It’s helpful to get advice and do your research in advance to make the process of setting up a tech business in Japan run smoothly. You don’t need to spend a lot of money to engage a tax provider to help out with your tax. THE COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS Startup venture companies are very interested to learn that the IPO market in Japan is very active. You don’t need billion- dollar listings like the US or other parts of the world. You could come in with funding for $10 million all the way up to a billion dollars. And the Japanese market is very open to that; it’s very wide. You also have cyclic NASDAQ small listings, known as ‘The Mother’s Exchange’, so there’s a market for companies to engage themselves with if they want to list in Japan. The reason a lot of people don’t know about it is because all the reporting is in Japanese. Only the large companies like Toshiba and Sony publish their financials in English. So speaking Japanese is a great advantage if you are looking to set up a tech business in Japan.
In terms of other countries investing in Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong are pretty active, as well as the US and the UK. They tend to be earning a lot of money and creating a lot of funds. GOVERNMENT SUPPORT Because of the declining population in Japan, the Japanese government provides grants to help small and medium-sized companies, both domestic and international. They are looking for inbound investments and are keen to attract foreign investors, as well as workers that want to come to Japan. The Japanese government is keen to incentivise new businesses to stay in the country for the long-term. They don’t want somebody to just come in, make a buck and leave; that’s not the Japanese mentality. If you want to work with Japanese
THERE’S A HEAVY HABITAT FOR A LOT OF THE STRONG TECH COMPANIES AND THERE IS LIKELY TO BE A BUYING SPREE BECAUSE A LOT OF SMALL TECH COMPANIES HAVE GONE PUBLIC.
Made with FlippingBook HTML5