Japan Posts Fewest IPOs Since 2011 Despite Market Near Highs

Japan's stock market has spent much of 2026 near all-time highs, yet only 17 companies chose to list on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in the first half of the year, the fewest since 2011. Total first-half proceeds were just ¥144 billion, the lowest first-half figure since 2022. The Financial Times examined why, as Go Inc.'s ¥88.6 billion ($553 million) taxi-hailing app IPO stood out as what The Next Web called "a rare bright spot for the Tokyo Stock Exchange."

Two forces appear to be driving the drought. Tokyo Stock Exchange reforms have raised listing standards for the Growth Market, making it harder for smaller companies to come to market. And Japan's tech investment narrative has been dominated by established players rather than a pipeline of newcomers: the AI rally reportedly pushed SoftBank briefly past Toyota as Japan's most valuable company, concentrating market attention in ways that left little room for debut stories.

The contrast with Hong Kong is difficult to ignore. Chinese AI companies have made Hong Kong the primary listing venue for the sector, with nearly $44 billion raised in equity capital markets in the first half of 2026, the highest level in five years, according to The Next Web's reporting on Baidu's chip unit Kunlunxin. Foundation model companies Z.ai and MiniMax each debuted on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange at valuations above $6 billion. Kunlunxin, Baidu's in-house chip division, is targeting a $50 billion valuation for its own Hong Kong listing.

What the reporting does not give you is a clear answer on whether Japan is missing AI startups because they do not exist yet as mature listing candidates, or because they are choosing to list elsewhere. The TSE reforms were aimed at improving listing quality, not suppressing tech listings specifically, and the drag on small IPOs predates the current AI cycle. The structural explanation and the AI-pipeline explanation may be additive rather than competing.

For global investors already in Japanese equities on governance grounds, the next signal to watch is whether any credible AI or semiconductor companies enter the TSE pipeline at all. If they do not appear by the time the current reform cycle matures, the perception gap with Hong Kong could become self-reinforcing.