The ‘very strong fintech team’ at Atsumi & Sakai guides financial institutions, start-ups and IT vendors through technologically innovative work in areas including payment services, securities, insurance and data privacy. Also of note is the firm’s establishment of a policy research institute in June 2022 which aims to ’build bridges between policies and practices in Japan that have not been tackled by either public or private institutions’. The practice is headed up by a trio of partners: Yuri Suzuki, Takafumi Ochiai and Kenichi Tanizaki. Suzuki is well versed in stablecoin legislation, Ochiai’s practice extends to dispute resolution matters in the fintech space, and Tanizaki has in-depth knowledge of banking and finance issues including bank APIs. Osamu Fujiwara leads the firm’s start-up support practice team.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

‘They established a Policy Research Institute and are building bridges between policies and practices in Japan that have not been tackled by either public or private institutions.'
‘Yuri Suzuki gives practical advice.’
‘A very strong fintech team well supported by the ancillary corporate and commercial teams.’

Key clients

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. MUFG Bank, Ltd.
Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG)
The Organization of Global Financial City Tokyo (FinCity.Tokyo)
Fintech Association of Japan (FAJ)
Japanese Bankers Association (JBA)
The Center for Financial Industry Information Systems (FISC)
Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI)
Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT)
Cabinet Office
Japan Association of Financial Services Intermediary Business
The Japan Association of New Economy (JANE)
National Strategy Office of Information and Communication Technology, Cabinet Secretariat
Financial Services Agency (FSA)