CONNECTING
JAPAN &THE NORDICS
Newsletter #13
March 29, 2021

This month we present our newest report showcasing 24 Nordic Fintech startups for a Japaneseaudience, the largest number ever to be presented in Japanese language <Download the reporthere> and feel free to contact us for more information.
In two weeks, we follow up with a second version of our Healthtech report, with nine more startups
being showcased (24 in total), and - as a new feature - Japanese subtitles on each of the startup
video pitches, linked in the report.
Finally, in May we launch a third report showcasing Nordic Urbantech startups with Japanese ambitions. We are convinced these startup presentations can help Japanese stakeholders identify
future partners and portfolio companies.
The only Nordic platform
Presently there are no digital platforms in the Nordics providing an actual portal for startups withactive Asian ambitions.
Good databases, like Dealroom, Crunchbase and the Hub, present a vast number of startups withstructured information, but these are of limited use for Asian investors as they do not convey thecompany’s international track record, if they have ambitions in Asia, nor how the product is relevant in an Asian context.
Understanding what the company actually does can be difficult, as the description on the company website is often wrapped in sales jargon and technical lingo.
Tailored to the audience
This is where our presentations depart from the mainstream. All the startups presented are actively looking for opportunities in Asia and Japan. All the solutions described relate to the Japanesecontext. And all the presentations follow the same uniform structure (see bullets below), making
it easier for Japanese stakeholders to compare companies and identify interesting propositions.
A one-liner describing the product vision• The problem the company seeks to solve• The company solution• How the solution is relevant for Asia, including case studies and POC• International experience• Company ambitions in Asia and/or Japan• Structured company data (revenue, funding stage, number of employees, contact info etc.)• A picture of the product and/or the team
Going digitalMoving into the future, we are looking to showcase these - and many more - Nordic startups on adigital platform, to assist Japanese stakeholders looking to engage with the Nordic tech ecosystem. Stay tuned here for more information.
More news from Innovation Lab Asia
• New Fintech event: A new report calls for an event… On 21 April we present Nordic Fintech in anexclusively Japanese language event together with Nordic Innovation House Tokyo and Japan
Fintech Association. <Sign Up here and check the agenda>• Investor event: On 17 March we were active at the TechBBQ Startup Capital, showcasing someof the Healthtech startups presented in our recent report (link) to 50 international investors.
Also Japanese investors were present. Stay in the loop for future startup capital event here.
• New Facebook page: Being true to our vision of communicating in Japanese language, wehave now launched a new Japanese channel on Facebook focusing on Nordic tech and startups! Check it here.

SHORT NEWS FROM THE NORDICS

DKThe Fintech company DigiShares has secured a new investment of appx. EUR
363,000 with two of the investors being from Japan.

DK

Subaio, which does SAAS for banks, raised EUR 4 million in Series A Investment from ex-Mastercard President.

DK

Peakon, employee feedback platform, has been acquired by Workday for EUR
587 million.

SEH2 Green Steel, creator of a fossil-free steel plant to be built in northern Sweden, has raised EUR 50 million from a group of investors including Cristina
Stenbeck and Daniel Ek.

SE

Greater Than, AI-based predictive risk insights for auto insurance carriers has
raised EUR 13.5 million through a directed share issue from Cuarto.

NO

Waste IQ, operator of a waste technology tracking platform, raised EUR 3 million.

NO/FIWhiteboard was purchased by Kahoot for EUR 6 million.

EE

Skeleton Technologies, which develops ultracapacitors, is now working withMarubeni who serves as a sales agent in Japan and Asia.

INTERVIEW WITH TATSURO SHIMADA

Could you elaborate on your role andactivities as an investor/entrepreneurin the Japanese and global innovation
ecosystems?
As an entrepreneur, I founded Connehito
and created the mobile application “Mamari”,
which is the No.1 app in Japan for mothers
to connect about pregnancy, childbirth andnursing, with more than 7 million users. As anangel investor, I have invested in more than 25
startups globally, including countries in Asia,Europe, Africa, Latam, and North America.
You went on a world tour some years ago,and ended up investing in many global
startups, could you tell us a bit more aboutthat?
I wanted to be able to create the best app
in the world. But I since spent all my life inJapan and never had the experience of living
abroad, I decided to go on a worldwide tour tovisit 40 countries, 60 cities from June 2019.
I met a lot of great people and built a global
network. I felt like I understood people andeach country’s culture better, and investing instartups further broadened my horizons.
Why is the Nordic innovation ecosystem
and market interesting to you?
I am personally connected with the Nordics. I
have good friends there and my sister lived inSweden. But I also think the Nordic countries
have a lot in common with Japan. They
have mature economies, good healthcare
systems, and an aging society. Due to thesesimilarities, I think Japan will be able to learn
from the Nordics. Nordic startups have a good
reputation, such as Kahoot, Spotify, Unity, andSupercell, which is also one of the reasons I
picked a Nordic startup to invest in. Attractive AIis now one of my portfolio companies. Recently
they entered the Japanese market, landed
their first sale in Japan and got a Japanesebusiness partner sales representative.

Name: 		Tatsuro Shimada

Position:

Angel investor and serial
entrepreneur

Location:

Tokyo, Japan

Contact:@tatsushim_en (Twitter)

What are the main barriers for Nordic techcompanies to enter the Japanese market?
I think there are 3 barriers. The first barrier toenter the Japanese market is the language.
You need to be able to understand Japanese.
The second is the unique Japanese culture.
E.g the Japanese word “daijoubu” means“yes” but sometimes “no”. It is common tomisunderstand conversations in daily life,
and one has to read the context correctly.
I think the US and European countries are
more straightforward in their communication.
The third barrier is strong local companies.
Traditional big companies like Sony, Nintendoand Toyota dominate the market, and therefore
you need to have a local partner that can help
you enter the Japanese market.

EVENT

BULLETIN BOARD
ACCELERATOR

Digital Garage, one of the pioneer accelerator programs in the Japaneseecosystem, are now accepting applications for seed-stage startups to their
23rd batch Open Network Lab (Onlab) Seed Accelerator for their July batch.
The program is industry agnostic, open to non-Japanese startups and one
is able to participate remotely. The program runs from July to October 2021
and the deadline for applying is April 30th.

PROGRAM

Prepare your Nordic startups entry into Japan while waiting for travelling restrictions to be lifted with the EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation’s
2-weeks online program, GET READY FOR JAPAN. The program helps participants to get an in-depth understanding of how to do business in Japan.
The program is for free and the deadline for applying is April 15th.

EDITORSPeter Johansen
Project Manager
pj@asia-house.dk
Julian Morié Hara Nielsen
Japanese Consultant
jni@techbbq.org

Innovation Lab Asia is a project collaboration
between Asia House and TechBBQ funded by
the Danish Industry Foundation.
For more information:

OUR REPORTS

Find all our reports here

Asia House|

Indiakaj 16, Copenhagen|www.innovationlabasia.dk|

hello@innovationlabasia.dk