Tokyo-based Sakana AI raised a ~$135M Series B from MUFG, Khosla, Macquarie, NEA, Lux, and others at a ~$2.6B valuation, becoming Japan's most valuable unicorn
At present, we are seeing a record amount of capital pouring … eWeek : Sakana AI Becomes Japan's Most Valuable Unicorn Maija Palmer / Global Corporate Venturing : ‘Big in Japan’ is not enough — where ...
Japanese fintech JPYC launches a yen-pegged stablecoin, the country's first, and its issuance platform JPYC EX, targeting $65.4B in circulation in three years
Timmy Shen / The Block :
Shares of Japanese optical fiber maker Fujikura are up ~171% YTD, outpacing the Nikkei's 22% and lifting its market cap to $33B+ amid the AI data center boom
- Shares in optical fibre maker up 160% since start of 2025 — Founded in 1885, Fujikura started out making silk and insulated wires
Japanese chip material maker Tekscend rose 13% in its Tokyo debut after raising ~$1B in its IPO; Tekscend makes photomasks for moving tiny circuits onto wafers
Yasutaka Tamura / Bloomberg :
SoftBank shares are up 61% in 2025, making it one of Tokyo's top performers, on the back of AI and chip investments, as some investors question the upside
The Japanese investment giant's shares are up 61% this year, outperforming the benchmark Nikkei Stock Average's 8.5% gain. …
SoftBank reports Q4 net profit up 124% YoY to ~$3.5B, a surprise profit and above a ~$182M loss est., due to improving valuations of Alibaba, T-Mobile, and more
Japanese tech investment group says multiple sites in Texas are being prepared for launch of Stargate AI project
Kioxia's shares rose 6%+ on its first day of trading in Tokyo, giving the chipmaker a ~$5.2B market cap; a group led by Bain had paid $18B for Kioxia in 2018
Private equity group finally floats Japanese flash memory provider at a valuation far below what it paid in 2018
Japanese chipmaker Kioxia's dramatic valuation drop from $18B in 2018 to $5.1B in its upcoming IPO is due to its high debt and lower AI exposure than rivals
Kioxia is going for a discount due to its high debt and lower AI exposure than rivals — Japan's last blockbuster initial public offering …