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No. of individual shareholders in Japan tops 70 mil for 1st time

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No. of individual shareholders in Japan tops 70 mil for 1st time

Policy works as planned, JGovt create NISA program that get rid of 20% capital gain. People start to invest, that simple.

-5 ( +6 / -11 )

The sharp increase is also attributable to the revamp in January of Japan's Nippon Individual Savings Account tax-free investment program, as the government encourages a shift from savings to investments in the equities market.

Hopefully these Boomer pensioners sitting on some considerable Bubble Era cash won't be wiped out by a market fluctuation that leaves the whales to sail on to greater heights after they are bailed out.

-4 ( +3 / -7 )

Hopefully, investments, high value manfacturing, decoupling from China continues from current momentum. Japan has enough automation and AI know how to deal with unfavourable demographics.

-2 ( +1 / -3 )

Well, that blows apart the countless posts on JT claiming that the stock gains are only benefiting a tiny minority.

Actually we are all stockholders, at least indirectly. The biggest investors are pension funds. And Japan's fund, which collects surplus revenue from the state pension system (yes, folks, the nenkin system is in surplus) is the 2nd biggest money pool in the world.

2 ( +7 / -5 )

And Japan's fund, which collects surplus revenue from the state pension system (yes, folks, the nenkin system is in surplus) is the 2nd biggest money pool in the world.

Then why are there constant features in the media, and which you can see anecdotally around the town, of pensioners living with Depression Era food strategies with unbelievably insufficient pensions to survive even with Japan's inflation which is less than other nations?

It obviously has not kept pace with the cost of living for many.

-1 ( +5 / -6 )

JeffLeeToday  07:20 am JST

Well, that blows apart the countless posts on JT claiming that the stock gains are only benefiting a tiny minority. 

Actually we are all stockholders, at least indirectly. The biggest investors are pension funds. And Japan's fund, which collects surplus revenue from the state pension system (yes, folks, the nenkin system is in surplus) is the 2nd biggest money pool in the world.

No wonder it is in surplus with an average pension of 150,000 JPY! Many people line with less than 100,000 This is by far the lowest in the G7 countries.

Many Japanese pensioner live in misery and it gets worst and worst as pensions have increased much less than inflation (whereas in most of countries there is an indexation mechanism ).

Didn’t you notice the surge of people in their seventies and even eighties working these days. The increase compare to 5 years ago is very obvious.

1 ( +6 / -5 )

Can you blame them? No returns on your savings and with the Japanese peso at dismally low buying power it's too expensive to move cash out of the country.

-1 ( +6 / -7 )

This is by far the lowest in the G7 countries.

Really? Canada's maximum pay out on its nenkin equivalent is C$713, about 81,000 yen a month, and it has more young working immigrants (supposedly to fund its system) than any other G7 country, with a cost of living that seems nearly double Japan's. Japan's system isn't great but it's something.

...why are there constant features in the media, and which you can see anecdotally around the town, of pensioners living with Depression Era food strategies.

Lots of people in Japan don't pay the 16,000 yen a month into the pension system, so they end up with very little. Many people on this board have admitted as much. They moan about something they refuse to take part in. That's their choice. If they don't like the lack of support, they've got no one to blame but themselves.

6 ( +7 / -1 )

The tally is calculated by simply adding up the number of shareholders of each company. For example, an investor holding shares of 10 companies is counted as 10 different shareholders, the bourses said.

"70 million individual shareholders" sounds like a nonsense figure then! How many different shares would a properly diversified portfolio own? There is plenty of advice out there that says you shouldn't have more than 5 to 10% in a single stock. This would mean many people owning at least 10 different companies and possibly many many more.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Often on TV "the man on the street" discuss investment the same way as taxi drivers, looking at it very short term. I fear many of the new shareholders, and even new NISA holders will jump on the sell button as soon as the markets start showing a bit of more volatility.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

The return on kokumin nenkin is low, but you get it at 65, the UK is soon to be 68, and Japanese women live to 88. 23 years of 780,000 is a lot if all you pay in is 15000 a month. Millions of women spend decades as dependent spouses who pay in nothing.

If men are subsidizing women's pensions, perhaps people should be less trigger happy when calling Japan an "extreme patriarchy". Housemakers are a relative "winner" in Japanese society, and many women are not unhappy to do it. My own view is that its better than a lot of the BS jobs (RIP David Graeber) out there.

8 ( +8 / -0 )

My own view is that its better than a lot of the BS jobs (RIP David Graeber) out there.

+1 just for mentioning the late, great David Graeber.

Fantastic anthropologist/economist and 'Debt' is a masterpiece.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

The volume of funding for Japanese startups is growing rapidly too. Let's go Japan!

2 ( +2 / -0 )

The headline figure is extraordinarily misleading. The number of Japanese individuals who are shareholders is nowhere near 70 million.

The tally is calculated by simply adding up the number of shareholders of each company. For example, an investor holding shares of 10 companies is counted as 10 different shareholders, the bourses said.

Any investor with an indexed or heavily diversified portfolio (which is most investors) is going to be counted hundreds of times using this method.

Also, individuals invested in NISA accounts are not shareholders. Rather they are beneficiaries of managed funds which hold shares in many companies. The individual with a NISA account doesn’t own any shares or have any of the rights associated with them (such as voting, attendance at shareholder meetings, etc). The fund is the shareholder in investee companies and only it can exercise those rights.

As the article notes, actual individual investors only own abot 16.9% of the shares in listed companies. That number was about 20% in 2010 and has actually been decreasing rather than increasing. This means that what this 74 million number is mesuring is just increased diversification of portfolios rather than more individual people actually owning shares.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Maybe it better reads the 1st out of few super rich shareholders holds more than 70 mil shares. rofl

1 ( +1 / -0 )

The 70 million number is rather misleading isn’t it. The number could get above the total population before long.

Also, individuals invested in NISA accounts are not shareholders. Rather they are beneficiaries of managed funds which hold shares in many companies. The individual with a NISA account doesn’t own any shares 

NISA can be used to buy individual listed stocks too, not only funds.

Indeed many might be holding just mutual funds though.

NISA, almost every week i can see someone on my social media post how many million they had invested and how they going to plan for the retirement life. My family we apply different approach, my wife will goes for NISA

NISA NISA NISA, it’s just a complicated tax break system.

If one invests via NISA and makes 10,000,000 yen profit, one can keep the 10,000,000 yen profit.

If one invests in a taxable account and makes 10,000,000 yen profit, one can still keep almost 8,000,000 yen profit.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

NISA can be used to buy individual listed stocks too, not only funds.

Indeed many might be holding just mutual funds though.

Ah, you are right about that. I did mine through a bank, which only allowed me to invest in funds (which was what I wanted anyway). But yeah on looking it up you can also invest in stock directly.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

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