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Presents updates on companies in Japan which offered securities in the country's securities market. Move of Shinsei Bank to launch a securitisation for Japanese residential mortgages; Launching of the mortgage backed security offerings by the Kanto Tsukuba Bank; Move of UFJ Bank to offer securitisation to small and medium sized companies by launching its second asset backed commercial paper conduits.

The article presents an interview with Naohiro Nishida and Yukio Egawa of Deutsche Securities Ltd., Jesse Bhattal of Lehman Brothers, Taro Masuyama and Jun Mihara of Merrill Lynch Japan Securities, Yasuyuki Otsu of Mitsubishi Securities Tokyo, Atsuo Akai of Morgan Stanley and Nobuaki Takezawa of Nomura Securities about the Japanese securitisation market. Egawa discusses the factors driving the growth of the mortgage securities market. Nishida comments on the growth of the collateralized debt obligation market.

Reports on the growth of the Japanese securities market as of November 2003. Factors contributing to the market growth; Channels for commercial mortgage-backed securities; Effect of the mortgage-backed securities program of the Government Housing Loan Corp. (GHLC) on market participants. INSET: The devil is in the data.

Discusses the growth of residential mortgage-back securitisation (RMBS) in the asset-backed securitisation market in Japan in 2004. Factors that contributed to the recovery of the Japanese securitisation market; Information on several RMBS transactions of banks in September 2004; Implementation of a securitisation programme for loans of small and medium sized enterprises by Japan Finance Corp. for Small Businesses on July 1, 2004.

Examines the state of the domestic corporate bond market in Japan as of November 2003. Risk and anomalies in the market that affect the economy; Implication of the issuance of vast quantities of government bonds; Factor that will determine corporate spreads; Reaction of investors to the performance of the bond market.

Reports on the demand for Samurai bonds of Japan as of November 2003. Factors contributing to the lack of demand for the bonds; Emergence of the Uridashi market at the expense of the Samurai market; Participation of Croatia and Korea in the Samurai market. INSET: Top tier issuers find niche in structures.

Reports on the lack of productivity from the Japanese domestic bond market as of November 2003. Reason behind the lack of productivity; Importance of the progress of reform in the commercial banking sector for determining corporate spreads; Failure of the market to reflect economic realities.

As part of the Japanese government's securities market reform, amendments to the Cabinet Order and the Cabinet Office Ordinances relating to the Securities and Exchange Law took effect on April 01, 2003. The amendments require disclosures to the Japanese public securities market to be more informative and credible. Changes to corporate disclosure require the company to disclose business risk factors, management's discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations and corporate governance conditions in its securities registration statement and annual securities report. In addition, a representative of the directors of a company may voluntarily attach a paper in which the representative confirms the appropriateness of the statements made in a securities registration statement, an annual securities report and a semi-annual securities report to such documents. Private placements to a small number of investors may solicit no more than 49 investors. Before the amendments, all solicitations to qualified institutional investors were included in calculating the 49 investors. But after the amendments, solicitations to qualified institutional investors are not included in the calculation if the number of qualified institutional investors is less than 250 and certain transfer restriction requirements are satisfied.

Presents updates on the structured finance market in Tokyo, Japan as of March 2005. Launch of securitisations of Mizuho Securities and Mizuho Investors Securities sponsored by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government; Information on the equipment lease securitisation launched by Mizuho Securities for Showa Leasing Co.

The article reports that the electronic share certificate system in Japan will be implemented on January 5, 2009 under the Law on Book-entry Transfer of Corporate Bonds, Stocks and Other Securities. As reported, upon implementation, shareholders' rights in all listed companies will be recorded and managed electronically in transfer account books by record-keeping organizations such as banks and securities companies. It is also reported that for a non-Japan Securities Depository Centre (JASDEC) shareholder, even if the actual shareholders' names appear on the list of shareholders and their rights are correctly recorded, a transaction involving their shares cannot be executed if the rights to the shares remain in the special account created for the transition as previously mentioned.

The article examines lessons from the 2011 Japanese earthquake and tsunami and discusses the impact of these disasters on the financial markets. Based on government estimates, the earthquake caused physical destruction amounting to 309 billion U.S. dollars. The Bank of Japan forecasts the return of a moderate economic growth in the country. A research paper by MSCI showed that the earthquake resulted in high stock market volatility.

On March 28 1995, the Japanese press got one of its rare scoops. Mitsubishi Bank and Bank of Tokyo, the papers announced, were preparing to merge and form the world's biggest bank. The news was a godsend for the country's banks, just three days away from the end of the financial year. The Nikkei 225 rose 3.6% the day the story broke, giving them a chance to sell equities just in time to boost their profit figures. As one group of analysts marvelled at the "synergy" and "farsightedness" of the deal, another camp was questioning whether the merger was driven by commercial considerations at all. David Snoddy, a financial analyst at Jardine Fleming Securities in Tokyo, was quick to describe the leaking of the news - a week before the official announcement - as "the short-term part of the finance ministry's Tokyo-Mitsubishi plan". Despite the partners' claims to be creating the world's first megabank, many analysts believe that to call it a bank at all is a misnomer. They see it rather as a giant vacuum cleaner, assembled by the Ministry of Finance to hoover up some of the trillions of yen in bad debts undermining the Japanese financial system. INSET: ... or the world's greatest bank?.

The article discusses the potential if hybrid securities to Japanese corporates. Every now and then a new product arrives in the capital market that is touted as the next big thing. Bankers believe that Japanese issuers should now be joining in the hybrid activity. The Japanese economic recovery has already been reflected in the bank capital market by the return of the megabanks and other financial institutions to the international markets that they had been shut out of since the late 1990s.

The investor base for subordinated Samurai bonds is growing, with BPCE's debut in the format -- the triple trancher is just the second ever Samurai sub deal to comply with Basel III -- unearthing investors that do not traditionally participate in FIG deals [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article informs that Japanese investors, led by Tokyo's huge life insurers, are generally seen as the key swing foreign investors in Australian paper over 1992. While the range of holdings among individual life companies varies, industry estimates suggest that on average they keep one tenth of the 20% of their total assets allocated to foreign securities in Australian dollar bonds. Even on a conservative basis this indicates life company holdings alone of around A$20 billion. Increasingly the Japanese life companies and trust banks are being joined not only by other institutions like the fire and marine insurers, but also by retail buyers. Most of the big eight life companies have subsidiaries in Sydney to manage their extensive portfolios. But despite what is plainly a long term commitment, the fear is that life companies will face official pressure to repatriate funds to bail out the stricken domestic stock market. At the same time life company bosses are known to be tired of the endless foreign currency losses they have made on their foreign investment.

The article presents forecasts on the financial market in Japan for 2007. The "Nikkei" newspaper reported that 45 percent of respondents to a survey cited mergers and acquisitions (M&A) as the most important issue of the year. The issuance of Japanese government bond (JCB) will continue to grow. Factors such as rising corporate earnings and the recovery of yen are supporting optimism for the Japanese stockmarket.

The article profiles the securities lending market in Japan. Research studies by finance professor Jun Uno notes the restrictions on the Japanese market and the stricter rules for investors than in the U.S. and Europe and the negative effect of short selling restrictions on the liquidity of Japanese securities markets. Data shows mixed results on the split between equity and fixed income securities lending, while Japanese government bonds (JGBs) are lent out for cash.

The article reports on the performance of the bond markets in Asia. Sean Henderson, head of debt syndicate for Asia Pacific at HSBC, says the stability of the local currency markets, which grew marginally in 2008 made them even more important in 2009. According to the article, the Indian rupee bond market is coming into its own in the wake of destructions in world markets. It adds that the Japanese market is one of the first pockets of the bond market which is expected to reopen in 2009.

This article reports on the increase in investor demand in the securitization market in Japan in 2004. Nomura has conducted research on the asset-backed securities (ABS), collateralized mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) and RMBS issuance in the country. The security issuance totalled 36.4 billion U.S. dollars. The ABS deals in Japan are still a relatively expensive form of funding. RMBS deals have increased due to a stronger economy and low interest rates which means more customers want to take out mortgages. The CMBS issuance has also continued to grow. CMBS deals were appealing while companies were strapped for cash. Collateralized debt obligation and collateralized loan obligation products are much more dynamic, especially in the small and medium enterprises securitizations. Several banks have been increasing their issuance of small- and medium-enterprises loans and mortgages securitizations. Japan's securitization market still suffers from woeful transparency. Many issuers opt to place smaller ABS deals to select groups of investors. This is partly historical, but the recent competition for ABS issues has further encouraged institutional investors to buy up entire private placements.

The article looks at the use of corporate hybrid security in the financial markets in Japan. The use of the hybrid security deal of Nippon Electric Corp. (NEC) in 2001 to defend its ratings in the middle of an urgent restructuring has earned it a negative image. The approach of Rating & Investment Information (R&I) to assigning equity credit to hybrid securities is similar to that of Moody's. Since the hybrid deal of Aeon Co., only one further issuer has made use of the instrument.

Presents an outlook for the Japanese bond market in 2004. Type of deals preferred by international fund managers; Prime example of an international issuer with yen funding needs; Introduction of lower tier two capital in Euro yen. INSETS: Citigroup and Poland make a splash;Slaking the Japanese retail thirst.

Interviews executives of investment banks and securities firms about their insights into the domestic bond market and the implications for overseas issuance by Japan's corporate elite. Jesse Bhattal, CEO of Lehman Brothers for Asia; Stefan Green, managing director of Goldman Sachs; Jun Kigoshi, head of equity capital markets for Mitsubishi Securities.

An interview with Masamichi Yasuda, chief manager of the financial planning department at Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), is presented. Its tier one preferred securities were issued in the global debt capital market as part of its capital management strategy. The positive outlook for MUFG and for the Japanese financial sector credit overcame the negative factors in the market. He cites the strategy for the issuance of residential mortgage-backed securities.

The article presents information related to financial market of Japan. To protect the interest of investors, the Securities and Exchange Law requires that information material related to an investment decision should be made public. When securities of more than ¥100 million are issued by companies, it would be mandatory for companies to file a securities registration to the Local Finance Bureau (LFB). In addition to this listed companies are required to disclose certain corporate information about their company in a report filed with the LFB on a semi-annual basis.

Focuses on the efforts of Bank of Japan (BoJ) to fund sectors of the Japanese economy that have been affected by the financial crisis in 1998 through asset-backed securitisation. Secondary objective of the bank in their effort; Information on a securitisation market workshop initiated by BoJ in 2003; Revisions made by BoJ to the investment criteria regarding small and medium enterprise related bonds in January 2004.

Presents news briefs related to Japanese securitisation as of March 5, 2004. Securitisation of leases launched by Showa Leasing Co.; Third apartment loan securitisation launched by Lehman Brothers Inc. for its affiliate New Century Finance Co.; Securitisation of five commercial mortgages launched by Credit Suisse First Boston Corp.

Reports that Japan Highway sold $500 million of bonds into the Euromarket in May 2003. Demand for the bond; Bookrunners for the bond.

Forecasts the currency bond issuance in Japan as of November 2003. Reasons for the poor activity in the equity-linked market; Preparedness of international fund managers to pay for volatility; Top bookrunners of Japanese equity-linked issuance as of October 15, 2003.

The article examines the resurgence of the samurai bond market in Japan in 2000. Investors are keen on investing on yen-denominated bonds due to the stability of the yen and low interest rates in Japan. Disappointed with the paltry returns offered by Japanese government bonds, investors are turning to samurai bonds because of the potential for higher yields. Furthermore, investors are pleased with the introduction of a financial accounting standard that requires companies to report the fair market value of their holdings in derivative instruments and mark the currency exchange rates for their swaps to market.

Fighting resumes in Ukraine; Japanese GDP disappoints; U.K. sees sluggish price growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the securities and lending markets in Asia as of August 2011. It states that in June, the six largest securities and lending nations in the region had a value of stock to loan worth 891 billion dollars, a 72% increase over 2009, while its stock on loan was worth 101.3 billion dollars, a 50% increase over 2009. It reports, however, that while Japan continues to lead in the market, its growth has been slower than newcomer nations like Korea and Taiwan.

The article examines the impact of the 2011 Japan earthquake and tsunami on the country's financial markets, and the lessons from past catastrophes. According to government estimates, the 2011 earthquake destroyed up to 309 billion U.S. dollars worth of assets, about 5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP). However, many economists are optimistic that the Japanese economy will recover towards the end of 2011. It highlights trends and outlook for money markets in Japan for 2011.

The article reports that Japan Finance Corp. for Municipal Enterprises (JFM) has launched a U.S. $965.8 million 10-year global yen bond in mid-February 2002, successfully overcoming difficult circumstances given the pessimism surrounding the country's economy. The issue, lead managed by Nikko Salomon Smith Barney, Nomura and UBS Warburg, was priced at seven basis points over JGB with a 1.55% coupon. The deal was rated AA/AaI. Bankers confirm that the deal was not oversubscribed, although the soft orders prior to launch did take it comfortably above U.S. $965.8 million. However, the situation for JFM became worse on the day before the issue launch when the credit rating agency Moody's put on review for a possible downgrade its Aa3 rating on yen denominated domestic securities issued or guaranteed by Japan.

The article reports on the $1.99 billion samurai bond issue launched by DaimlerChrysler in Japan in November 2000. The deal, which had four tranches and was led by Nikko Salomon Smith Barney and Goldman Sachs, raised record sums to cover the automotive group's investment in Mitsubishi Motors. The deal was apparently not adversely affected by the poor outcome of a similar deal that had been launched earlier by another company, Xerox. Similar deals have been announced by McDonald's, Bayerische Landesbank, and Korea Water Resources within three weeks following the launch of DaimlerChrysler's deal.

The article reports on the 30 per cent decline of Oracle Japan Corp.'s shares in Japan during the third week of April 2000. Japanese investors took up 7.8 million shares, but international portfolio investors were more difficult to entice, resulting in the offer's cut from 2.8 million shares to 1.8 million shares. The Oracle share issue preceded the migration of the stock from Japan's over-the-counter market to the main board of the Tokyo Stock Exchange on April 28, 2000, when the placement shares were due to begin trading. Oracle has a market capitalization worth of $51 billion.