Fund and asset management · JFSA
Japan investment management business registration (JFSA)
Japan holds one of the largest pools of institutional and retail savings in the world, allocated by investors who are methodical and long-term in outlook. Investment management is a registered financial instruments business under the national framework, with categories matched to the activity performed.
The regulator
The Financial Services Agency supervises investment management businesses under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act, with much of the registration process handled through Local Finance Bureaus. Documentation and supervision are conducted in Japanese and expectations on investor protection are high.
What the licence permits
Regulated under the JFSA
- Provide discretionary investment management to Japanese clients
- Manage domestic collective investment vehicles where registered
- Access one of the largest savings pools in the world
- Operate within a mature and stable capital market
Who it suits
Managers with a serious commitment to Japanese institutional capital and the resources to operate locally in Japanese.
Market access
Access to Japanese investors. There is no regional passport.
What to weigh
Language and localisation are the practical barrier rather than the rules themselves, and relationships with Japanese allocators are built over years. This is a long-horizon market.
We run the Japan application end to end
Whether you build from new or acquire an existing licensed entity, BrokLicense handles incorporation, the regulator application, the AML and compliance framework, safeguarding and banking arrangements, and the operating stack. You stay the principal. We do the work, in confidence, and stay on for compliance once you are live.
Cost, capital, and timelines depend on your model and are set out in a first consultation, under NDA, not published here.
Other permissions in Japan
Related reading
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- The MiFID Investment Firm Licence: What the Permissions Actually CoverA MiFID licence is not one permission but a set you choose from. The combination you pick sets your capital, your obligations, and your supervisory weight.
- Licensing an Investment-Management Firm: What Changes When You Manage Other People's MoneyRunning an asset or portfolio manager sits under a different permission than broking. Here is what the licence covers and what regulators expect.
- EU Passporting Explained: One Licence, Thirty MarketsA single EU investment-firm licence works across the whole European Economic Area. Here is how passporting works and why it shapes where firms base.
Fund and asset management in other Asia-Pacific jurisdictions
All jurisdictionsDiscuss your mandate in confidence
Every engagement begins under a mutual NDA. Set out the firm you intend to operate and the timeline you are working to, and you leave the first consultation with a recommended jurisdiction, the route to the licence, and a defined scope of work.
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