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July 24, 2026
 

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Sheryl Tian Tong Lee
Carsten Stoehr, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking's Asia-Pacific deputy head, has been leading more complex financing deals to increase profitability at the bank.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 21, 2026
Credit Suisse veteran shakes up SMBC in new era for Japan banks
Japan¡¯s second-largest lender is branching out into new products and moving toward riskier, higher-yielding structured credit deals.
Mizuho Financial Group is seeking an equity capital market license and plans to bolster its stock underwriting team in Seoul to capitalize on South Korea¡¯s booming semiconductor market, said Joris Dierckx, head of banking for Asia-Pacific.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 10, 2026
Mizuho targets South Korea and India hires to join top dealmaking ranks
The bank aims to become Asia¡¯s top investment bank in as soon as five years, mainly by strengthening its equity underwriting and M&A advisory operations.
Carsten Stoehr, deputy head of Asia Pacific at Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp., in Singapore, on May 28
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 4, 2026
SMBC moves beyond traditional lending to spur returns
The Japanese lender is utilizing tools such as synthetic risk transfers and loan portfolio sales, Asia-Pacific Deputy Head Carsten Stoehr says.
Japanese banks, including Mizuho Financial Group, and other foreign lenders in Asia have seen departures from their loan financing teams as loan demand softens.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 14, 2026
Senior loan bankers depart Mizuho and SMBC after Asia volumes slump
Asia¡¯s offshore loan market has been weighed down by elevated dollar interest rates, geopolitical risks and heightened competition among global lenders as deal flow dwindles.
Heliostat mirrors at the site of Dunhuang Shouhang 100MW Tower Solar Thermal Power Generation Project in Gansu province, China, on Oct. 16, 2024
BUSINESS / Tech
Sep 10, 2025
China¡¯s green tech firms pour billions into overseas factories
Chinese companies are expanding their supply chains abroad to capture new markets, avoid tariffs and get closer to sources of raw materials, according to new research.
Over the past three years, banks with the most blended-finance transactions include SMBC, Citigroup, BNP Paribas and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 22, 2025
Sumitomo Mitsui among banks stepping up deals for blended finance
Deals blending public and private funds totaled $18 billion last year, down 21% from 2023, according to Convergence.
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group has decided to withdraw from the Net-Zero Banking Alliance, a spokesperson said.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 4, 2025
Japan¡¯s SMFG joins Wall Street in exiting net zero banking group
Japan¡¯s second-largest bank has decided to withdraw from the Net-Zero Banking Alliance.
U.S. government scientists participating in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change were issued a stop-work order from the Trump administration, according to media reports.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Feb 24, 2025
Trump creates uncertainty for world¡¯s most cited climate report
The U.S. absence comes amid broader cuts to research funding and a retreat from climate diplomacy under the Trump administration.
The Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. logo atop a building at the Hsinchu Science Park in Hsinchu, Taiwan
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 20, 2023
¡®Sell TSMC, buy ASML¡¯ gains traction as China-Taiwan risks grow
Because TSMC¡¯s operations are mostly in Taiwan, it faces heightened geopolitical hazards. ASML, meanwhile, stands to benefit from the fragmentation.
Visitors walk along the Marina Barrage water catchment area in Singapore in 2009.
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 10, 2023
Singapore fighting?rising seas to save $50 billion in real estate
During a half-century of independence, Singapore has fought to expand its territory, inch by hard-won inch. On the tip of the Malaysian peninsula, the island city-state piled up sand to expand its coastline and reclaim land from the sea.
The Keppel Marina East Desalination Plant in Singapore on July 21. Public Utilities Board, which is responsible for Singapore's water management, has a long-term goal of reducing the energy use of water desalination to 1 killowatt-hours per 1,000 liters.
ENVIRONMENT
Aug 3, 2023
Singapore is building the technology it needs for new climate era
Building renewables like solar and wind requires a lot of land, one thing Singapore doesn¡¯t have.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 19, 2023
Ancient Amazon charcoal seen as next big thing in carbon markets
Known as biochar, this black substance can store carbon for hundreds of years and improve soil quality at the same time.
Japan Times
WORLD
May 17, 2023
A billion new air conditioners will save lives but cook the planet
Demand for air conditioners is surging in markets where both incomes and temperatures are rising, such as India, China, Indonesia and the Philippines.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 9, 2023
Funds that inflate green credentials face strict new rules in Japan
Under the FSA¡¯s new guidelines, only funds that consider environmental, social and governance as a ¡®key factor¡± when choosing investments can be marketed as such.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 9, 2022
Japan to ramp up scrutiny of ESG data providers with new guidelines
With ESG assets set to reach $53 trillion by 2025, concerns are growing over the substantial influence these typically unregulated ESG data providers have over the industry.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets
Dec 8, 2022
Hong Kong and Singapore compete for green finance supremacy
The race to attract all that fresh money and trading business in Asia will take years to play out, but so far Singapore has an early edge over Hong Kong.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 19, 2022
Cost of green hydrogen to match LNG within a decade, French utility says
Interest in hydrogen is rapidly growing amid a global effort to cut dependence on coal and natural gas.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 10, 2022
With $47 billion in assets, China¡¯s climate-focused funds surpass U.S.
In 2021, record inflows and outperformance by the domestic clean energy sector bolstered Chinese climate funds by drifing a 149% increase in value from the previous year.
Japan scientists identify clusters of protein believed to trigger Alzheimer¡¯s disease
A team of researchers said they found a ¡°seed¡± that accelerates the amyloid beta accumulation process in the brain, naming it ¡°Peak 1 amyloid beta,¡± as seen in a mouse's brain.
Indian brothers make manga debut in Japan
Two Indian brothers made their manga debut in Japan with "Kung Fu Kung Fool" ¡ª an action-comedy series that follows the adventures of a notorious thief and a young boy.
Low-income families in Japan cut food and air conditioning during summer break
Yumiko Watanabe, the chairperson of nonprofit Kidsdoor, explains the results of a survey in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward on July 1.
Iran strikes on CIA facilities prompt questions about possible Russian role
Iranian drones are displayed in an undisclosed location in Iran, in this handout image obtained on Jan. 13, 2025.U.S. officials have acknowledged that Russia has ?provided targeting ?and other support for Iran in its drone strikes on U.S. targets in the Persian Gulf region.
Intervention is the word after yen moves beyond ?163 and sits there
The government could prop up the yen at any moment, though its signaling is hard to read.
Can Japanese comedy get laughs in English? Yoshimoto Kogyo lets the jokes rip
Wes-P has millions of followers and his viral clips made him recognizable out of Japan.
The 180-day locals: Life on Japan¡¯s digital nomad visa
Christopher Flinn works remotely from Tokyo earlier this month. Japan issued 646 digital nomad visas in 2025, but tourism officials are hoping to increase that figure in the coming years, with Japan's relatively cheap cost of living and the weak yen seen as potential draws for young professionals.
Japan reveals hint of new defense spending target in fiscal blueprint
The Self-Defense Forces' Type 16 mobile combat vehicle fires during a joint live-fire drill with U.S. Marines as part of the annual Resolute Dragon exercises in Yufu, Oita Prefecture, on June 28.
Summer has arrived in Japan and so have hot sleepless nights
Amid the heat and humidity in Japan, a good night¡¯s sleep is growing increasingly elusive without the heavy use of air conditioning.
Maya Ongaku¡¯s DIY dream is getting bigger
The members of Maya Ongaku ¡ª (from left) Tsutomu Sonoda, Shoei Ikeda and Ryota Takano ¡ª grew up on the Shonan Coast south of Tokyo and have been friends since their school days.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

For many people, utility poles and power lines have become such a familiar part of Japan¡¯s landscape that they often go unnoticed.
Why Japan¡¯s utility poles won¡¯t be disappearing anytime soon
By Alex K.T. Martin

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