Value Creation Strategy

Value Creation Process

Contributing to the creation of a sustainable society that is even more convenientand prosperous than today’s by resolving social and environmental issues
Management Philosophy

Main Management Resources

Awareness toward co-creation withall stakeholders

Human resources
with vitality

Transforming existing values andcreating new values in response
to various problems

Entertainment
Business

Credit know-how nurtured
over the 70-plus years since
the Company’s founding

By promoting digital conversion
in combination with real life,change the customer/
employee experience

System infrastructure capable ofresponding ﬂexibly to changeRock-solid
sales platform

Diverse ﬁnancing based on highcreditworthiness

15.4%(equity ratio attributable to owners of parent)Group business proﬁt(previous ﬁscal year: 15.6%)¥60.9 billion(previous ﬁscal year: ¥52.3 billion)¥10.9 billion

Total dividends(previous ﬁscal year: ¥8.6 billion)

111.0%

Total shareholder return (consolidated)(previous ﬁscal year: 85.5%)

Realization of a resilient organization

Progress in social and environmental initiatives led
mainly by the Sustainability Promotion Committee
Number of committee meetings/
working groups held
28 in total

Finance BusinessCommittee: Nine times; WG: Climate change 10 times; DE&I: Nine times

Number of dialogues heldwith shareholders/investors

214
0

Number of security incidents

Fostering motivation and diverse values
74.5%
24.9%

Ratio of female employees

Use ﬁnancial services as a method
to take on the challengeof ﬁnancial inclusion

Ratio of female managers*1

Real Estate–related
Business

G lo b al

Lease Business

Customer base with an industry-leading
number of members

Sound ﬁnancial base

7.5%

(previous ﬁscal year: 6.5%)

Shareholders’ equity ratio

Professional human resources
well-versed in the payment/ﬁnance ﬁelds
Service development track recordin the ﬁnance ﬁeld

Regions/ Shareholders Employees
communities

Financial results

Providing a wide rangeof advanced security
services with the strengths
of creditworthinessand a wide customer baseInnovation creation
capabilities

Partners

Return on equity (ROE)

Payment Businessive

Customers

P5

l
gita
Di

Human resources that are active under
our common system for all employees

The Six Businesses

Inno
va
t

An organizational culture that allows
creative destruction and failure

Value Created in Collaboration with Stakeholders

Transforming ourselves into a comprehensive life
services group centered on ﬁnancial services

Corporate culture thathas been handed downin continuous succession
Meritocracy free from age, gender,or educational attainment bias

leading-edge service company

Number of human resources withdigital technology backgrounds

New business/Product development

Global Business

Number of new product releases

Creating humanresources andan organization where
each person can fulﬁll
an active role in theirown way

Enriching ourcustomers’ lives
and enablingthem to live happily andtrue to themselves

Approx. 40

Number of SWITCH SAISON*2 proposals andnumber of commercialization projects

Approx.1,000 proposals; four commercialization projects

Materialities for Sustainability
Achieving sustainablegrowth and improving
corporate value throughsound corporate
management

Approx. 260

86.3%

Paid leave take-up rate

Creating a better
society throughco-creation withpartners

Strengthening ability to resolve socialand environmental issues

Protecting the richnatural environmentand culture thatenriches life, andenergizing people in theregion and community

Business alliances aimed at building a carbon-neutral
and recycling-oriented society
Environmental protection activities(operation of Akagi Nature Park)

About 65,000 visitors

Reducing paper consumption by digitizing the ﬂow
of operations

Highest level of creditworthinessfor an independent non-bankFinancial inclusion for the underserved classworldwide, beyond Asia

Declining birthrate, aging population

Requests from the market environment/society

Climate change

Digitalization

Promoting conversion to cashless operations

12

Growing needs for asset formation*1 General manager and manager*2 Internal venture program

For details, please see page P35

Value Creation Strategy

Retrospective Overviews of Past Medium-term Management Plans
FY2016–FY2018

FY2019–FY2021

To FY2022

Further acceleration of efforts to revise the card business and transformation to a general non-bank

Transformation and Renewed Growth Neo Finance Company in Asia

Building a Foundation

Payment Business*1

FY2021Business Proﬁt(IFRS)FY2018Business Proﬁt(IFRS)

52.2 billion

Finance Business*1

FY2021 business profit(excluding the impact of provision for loss on interest repayment)

52.3 billion¥

650億円超¥FY2021Business Proﬁt

FY2018 Results
EPS¥186.8

Shareholders’Equity Ratio

15.3%

EPS

6.2%

¥226.4

Basic Policy
Realize innovation and changing business models

Face the challenge of new business models

Expand the stock business and the fee business

Full migration to the Associated Core System

Completed a foundation capable of allianceexpansion and product development

Responsive to diverse customer needs

Expanded the Global Business into more countries

Shareholders’Equity Ratio

15.6%

ROE

6.5%

Basic Policy
Become a finance company advancing with customers
for 50 years

Provide peace of mind anddiscover the potential in money

Results

Payment platform enhancement/
Finance Business expansion

65 billion¥

FY2021 Results
ROE

Results
Achieved a certain degree of progress toward businessdiversification
Payment Business

Recovery under way due to the effects of shortened
business hours and people having refrained from going out

Finance Business

Steady expansion as the second pillar

Global Business(IFRS)
More thanAbout the impact of provision for loss oninterest repayment
In addition to carefully examining such factors
as its past reimbursement record, the Company
has posted the necessary allowance required toaddress future uncertainties, including changes in
economic conditions and taken preparatory steps
to account for unexpected events with respect totrends in interest reimbursement claims.
In FY2021, the Company recorded a provision
for loss on interest repayment of ¥13.6 billion after
taking into account the projected future trend ofinterest repayment claims, etc.
The level of business profit was more than
¥65.0 billion, exceeding the initial target of ¥60.0
billion after excluding this impact.

Prospect of increased profit contribution as a third pillar*1 The Payment Business includes the Entertainment Business; the Finance Business includes the Lease and Real Estate-related businesses

13Value Creation Strategy

Overview of the Current Medium-term Management Plan
FY2022

FY2024

Transformation into a comprehensive life services group

New Medium-termManagement Plan from FY2024

Business profit(initial target)¥53 billion

FY2022Business Proﬁt(IFRS)

60.9 billion¥

FY2022 Results
EPS¥278.9
Shareholders’Equity Ratio

15.4%
ROE

7.5%
Payment Business*1

Finance Business*1¥70 billion
Both growth in consolidated contribution including the
Global Business and growth in each non-consolidated
business trending firmly.

Portfolio transformation

Projected to achieve the Company’s consolidated
business profit target of ¥70 billion for FY2024, one year
ahead of schedule.
The next Medium-term Management Plan will startanew from FY2024.

Aim for more than¥100 billion in business profit
as a medium-term goal
Muscularization of
the business structure

Re-growth phase

Global Business*2*1 The Payment Business includes the Entertainment Business; the Finance Business includes the Lease and Real Estate–Related businesses*2 From the first quarter of FY2023, the Global Business, which was included in the Payment Business up to FY2022, has been changed to an independent reporting segment

Basic Policy

Basic Concept

Transformation into a comprehensive life services groupContinue and penetrate the three concepts andaccelerate the drive of each business.

Achieving customer success through the fusion of the real and digital worlds

DigitalWith transformation into a comprehensive life services group as its medium-term management
vision, Credit Saison formulated the Medium-term Management Plan for the FY2022 to FY2024
period with the core concepts of innovative, digital, and global, and achieving customer
success through the fusion of the real and digital worlds as its mission statement.

Innovative

GlobalGrowth Strategy Framework

Vision under the Medium-term Management Plan
1 Establish the Saison Partner Economic Zone and Reinforce Cooperation among theSales expansion

Group‘s Companies

2 Revitalize the Payment Business
3 Promote Healthy Growth and Expansion into New Fields for the Finance Business
4 Accelerate Global Business Development and Further Growth Expansion

GlobalP21

Payment
P27

Finance
P29

Reinforcement of Business Foundation

CSDX Human Resource Financial Capital
Strategy
Strategy
Strategy
P31
P38
P41

14

Improved
proﬁtability

Value Creation Strategy

Achieving sustainable growthand improving corporate
value through soundcorporate management

Mainly related materialities

Creating human resources
and an organization where
each person can fulﬁll an
active role in their own way

Enriching our customers’ lives
and enabling them to live
happily and true to themselves

Protecting the rich naturalenvironment and culture thatenriches life, and energizing people
in the region and community

Creating a better society
through co-creation
with partners

Establishment of the Saison Partner Economic Zone andReinforcement of Cooperation among the Group’s Companies
Establish the Saison Partner Economic Zone
In transforming ourselves into a comprehensive life services group, our goal is to establish the Saison partner economic zone. We will pursue synergies with Group companies in addition to
our existing business partners with the aim of becoming a non-bank with a strong presence in each of the Payment, Finance, and Real Estate–related businesses. Specifically, we will actively
promote initiatives that allow our existing alliance partners to utilize the Group’s base of approximately 35 million customers and expand our share of corporate transactions through Group
collaboration. In addition to developing new products in the fields of payment, asset management, and real estate, we will create value suited to individual customers by combining resourcesof Saison partners through the diversification of coordinated relationships and services.
Partners

ymPa

新社名ロゴタイプデザイン案

セゾンビジネスサポート

BUSINESS SUPPORTManagement
consulting

Credit Saison
Group Services

Individuals

Business
success

Problems

Ofﬁce automation(OA)
communicationequipment sales/
maintenance

Credit guarantee

Intend toincrease/
prepareRich
lifestyleceInter-corporation
payment services

ExpenseC
management

Real estateGroup companies

n
na

Banks

Credit unions

Fi

en
t

Department stores

Lease

Type A

Financial services

カラー 4C

Safety/security

BUSINESSSUPPORT

Securities

Convenience/
good value

Want toknow/learn

CMYK：C 100
RGB ：R 29#1D4293

Y0

B 147

K0

CMYK：C 100
RGB ：R 0

M0

G 151

Y 100

K0

B 75

＃00974B

Sustainable
society

Telecommunications

Investment

Corporations

Crowdfunding

15

HR training services

bu
ew

Web3

N

Lendingsi

Online advertising

l

ba

lo

G

Payment services

nessFintechM 80
G 66

Establishment of the Saison Partner Economic Zone and Reinforcement of Cooperation
among the Group‘s Companies: Interview with the Executive Officer in Charge
Taking on the challenge of establishing the Saison Partner Economic Zone with all Group
employees working in unison

Q

Hironao Wakamei

Executive Officer
In charge of Group Strategic
Management Dept.
General Manager, Group
Strategic Management Dept.

Please tell us about the new initiatives launched as partof Credit Saison’s integrated Group management with
its affiliated companies and the resulting synergy
toward transforming into a comprehensive life services
group as raised in the Medium-term Management Planfrom FY2022.

We have engaged in Group management that aims to enhance
corporate value while respecting the independence of each of ouraffiliated companies and maintaining a sense of friendly competition.
As a result, we have started to form a corporate Group that stays true
to Credit Saison with its rich diversity and engagement in a wide rangeof businesses. Under the current Medium-term Management Plan, we
have put forth the basic goal of transforming into a comprehensive life
services group, and aim to build the Saison Partner Economic Zone with
an awareness of integrated Group management.
As an example, as we recognize that communication is the mostimportant aspect of business cooperation, the Credit Saison Chairman andPresident visit each affiliated company in person in addition to receiving
explanations of initial business plans and progress reports from affiliatedcompanies. This approach provides a forum for them to cooperate directlywith our affiliated companies in their short-, medium-, and long-termbusiness strategies and progress updates, as well as to exchange opinions,
thereby serving to create opportunities to think about managing theGroup as an integrated whole. As part of our efforts to deepen information
sharing at the front lines, we established a new Group intranet, introduced
a common-use Slack environment, and made other improvements tothe information sharing infrastructure used by Group companies. At thesame time, we are advancing initiatives to share information in face-to-facesettings, including sales representative exchange meetings.
Moreover, we introduced shared services (outsourcing of accounting
and other back-office operations to Credit Saison) for some affiliatedcompanies in an effort to improve the efficiency of operations and have also
begun building a framework to reinforce and rationalize sales. Currently,
we are working to expand the number of eligible companies by launching
Group-wide task forces, which include members from both Credit Saisonand our affiliated companies as part of ongoing investigations.
16

We are also implementing branding strategies and are working tofoster a more unified image for the Group by naming our companies,
products, and services after “Saison.”*Q

How are these initiatives progressing? Please tell us about
the major outcomes and any challenges that have arisen.

We have seen a tendency for the Group as a whole, including Credit
Saison, to focus on customer satisfaction and profit generation fromits own perspective. Although I do not intend to deny the marketingstrengths that we have developed in a way that stays true to Saison in
their entirety, this approach tends to lead to discussions and actions
regarding partial optimization. Yet, to realize integrated Groupmanagement, each employee of the Group must think and act fromthe perspective of overall optimization. As I see it, the most important
aspect for achieving this perspective is for Credit Saison and eachaffiliated company to possess an interest in and attempt to learn about
the businesses of the other members. We will therefore advance related
initiatives with a focus on building frameworks and mechanisms, as wellas on strengthening communication, for this purpose.

Q

To achieve the goal of transforming into acomprehensive life services group, what do you think theGroup must do in particular going forward?

Each Group employee must undergo a further change in his or her
mindset. Starting next spring, we will accelerate personnel exchanges
between Group companies via internal recruitment along with efforts tostrengthen communication, and will begin considering rationalization
through the consolidation of branches. Moreover, I feel that we must
reinforce the personnel system in a way that links contributions to theGroup with employee evaluations, as well as strengthen management
and accounting systems that help visualize the degree of contribution
by our affiliated companies. There are many things left to do. And asa member of the Group, I will place our customers first as I act with anawareness of optimization for the entire Group.
* Atrium Co., Ltd., was renamed Saison Realty Co., Ltd. (April 2023), and JPN COLLECTION SERVICE
CO., LTD., was renamed SAISON COLLECTION SERVICE CO., LTD. (July 2023)

Establish the Saison Partner Economic Zone and Reinforce Cooperation among the Group’s Companies

The management style taken by each Group company has focused on the independence of each company, without being hemmed in by brands or capital relationships. Moreover, we will
maintain the independence of each company into the future as we aim to differentiate ourselves from our competitors and establish a comprehensive life services group that offers thegreatest convenience to our customers. To achieve these aims, we will further strengthen Group product coordination with respect to each customer in a customer-oriented manner within the
Saison Partner Economic Zone, a loose network of horizontal connections.

Outcomes of integrated Group management

Case study

Contributions to profits by Saison Fundex Corporation and Saison Realty Co., Ltd.

Saison Fundex and Saison Realty have exhibited remarkable outcomes amid efforts to advance integrated Groupmanagement.
In particular, Saison Fundex is undergoing a business model change, transitioning from its conventional businessportfolio centered on unsecured loans to one centered on real estate finance.
Saison Fundex

Shift from unsecured loans (credit card loans) to a business portfolio
centered on real estate ﬁnanceUnsecured loan

Trend in composition of assets balance

LeasebackCredit guarantee

7%

10%

PJ LoanMortgage-backed loan

25%

Unsecured loan

FY2012

25%

2%

39%

About ¥90 billion(including off-balance
sheet assets)

Credit guarantee

49%

FY2022

About ¥420 billion(including off-balance
sheet assets)

PJ Loan17%

Mortgage-backed loan

¥ 0.66 billion

Proﬁt contribution (Japan standard)26%¥ 7.83 billion

Changed its focal business to the development and leasing businesses;
the assets of the liquidation business are on a downtrend

Saison Realty

Other

Trend in composition of assets balance
Other

Real estate trading business

20%

25%

FY2012

About ¥240 billion

Hotel businessProﬁt contribution (Japan standard)

2%

11%

Liquidation business8%

Hotel business

6%

Real estate
trading business

Development business

About ¥220 billion

Real estate revitalization
business

Leasing business¥ 0.25 billion

17%

36%

FY202215%

Liquidation business

53%

Proﬁt contribution (IFRS standard)

We are working to generate synergy at the frontline
level by holding exchange meetings attended
by corporate sales representatives from eachGroup company, which provide opportunities forparticipants to get to know each other.
This effort promotes the exchange of opinions
toward generating ideas that help utilize the Group’s
resources in an integrated manner with the aim oftransitioning to a comprehensive life services groupand provide value to our customers.
In FY2023, we held these meetings two times,
during which we advanced efforts to strengthen
coordination toward establishing relationships
between the Group and our customers througha total of 30 presentation proposals, including
complex proposals that combine the functions ofeach company.
Moreover, this effort expanded communication
channels between Group companies and served tobroaden the Group’s integrated profits by forming
relationships that connect each company in a direct,even-footed, and timely manner.

Proﬁt contribution (IFRS standard)

17¥ 8.28 billion

7%

Corporate sales representative exchange meetingEstablish the Saison Partner Economic Zone and Reinforce Cooperation among the Group‘s Companies

SAISON ASSET MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.

Broad-minded Co., Ltd.

Enabling periodic monthly investments through Credit Saison–issued credit cards

Launch of Saison Money Navi
In August 2022, Credit Saison and Broad-minded Co., Ltd., entered into a capital andbusiness alliance in aims of further expanding and growing the financial service domainsof both companies. As part of our efforts to strengthen coordination involving financial
advisory (planning) services, in July 2023 we launched Saison Money Navi, an online
financial planning service that allows users to designate a financial planner and reserve
meeting times online. This service allows users to receive free consultations regarding
a wide range of financial issues, including insurance, investment trusts, bonds, stocks,
mortgages, and real estate transactions.

Since its founding in 2006, SAISON ASSET MANAGEMENT has held the philosophy ofaiding asset formation in a way that supports well-being for the valuable future of each of ourcustomers. Under this philosophy, it has provided long-term asset growth funds that havereceived the support of many of our customers, with more than 150,000 contracts totaling
approximately ¥700 billion in assets under management (as of November 30, 2023).
With the start of the New NISA system in January 2024, Credit Saison–issued Saison
Card and UC Card members are now able to use their credit
cards to make periodic monthly investments in the three
investment trusts that can be purchased using SAISON ASSETMANAGEMENT general transaction accounts.
Percentage of customers by investment trust proﬁt/loss(other businesses)

1 99.5%No.

Percentage of customers

January 2024
SAISON ASSET MANAGEMENT
launches the new“Saison-to-tsuzuku”
Internet transaction service

Wait-free reservations

99.5%
CompanyA
Company
B
Company
C

96.3%
91.3%

CompanyD

More than -10%
Less than 0%

All steps from reservation making tomeetings are completed online.

97.7%

88.5%
0% or more
Less than 10%

10% or more
Less than 30%

30% or more
Less than 50%

Enables “Invest by Card” for up to¥100,000 per month using
Credit Saison–issued credit cards

50% or more

Features of Saison Money Navi

* Source: Prepared by Credit Saison based on “Analysis on the Common KPIs Comparable AcrossInvestment Trust Distributors,” Financial Services Agency (as of March 31, 2023)* R&I Fund Award
Shisan Keisei Tatsujin Fund “10-year Investment Trusts/Foreign Stock Core Superior Fund Award”
The R&I Fund Award is presented to provide reference information based on the past data R&I believes tobe reliable (however, its accuracy and completeness are not guaranteed by R&I) and is not intended torecommend the purchase, sale or holding of particular products or guarantee their future performance. The Award is not the Credit Rating Business, but one of the Other Lines ofBusiness (businesses excluding Credit Rating Business and also excluding the Ancillary Businesses) as set forth in Article 299, paragraph (1), item (xxviii) of the Cabinet Ofﬁce
Ordinance on Financial Instruments Business, etc. With respect to such business, relevant laws and regulations require measures to be implemented so that activities pertaining tosuch business would not unreasonably affect the Credit Rating Activities. Intellectual property rights including copyright and all other rights in this Award are the sole property of R&I,
and any unauthorized copying, reproduction and so forth are prohibited.
* Reﬁnitiv Lipper Fund Awards Japan 2023
Shisan Keisei Tatsujin Fund “Investestment Trusts/Mixed-asset Japanese Yen-backed Flexible/10-year Assessment Period/Best Fund Award”
The Reﬁnitiv Lipper Fund Awards are based on the Lipper Leader for Consistent Return rating, which is a risk-adjusted performance measure calculated over 36, 60 and 120 months.
The fund with the highest Lipper Leader for Consistent Return (Effective Return) value in each eligible classiﬁcation wins the Reﬁnitiv Lipper Fund Award. For more information, seelipperfundawards.com.
Although Reﬁnitiv Lipper makes reasonable efforts to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the data contained herein, the accuracy is not guaranteed by Reﬁnitiv Lipper.
* This content is prepared for the information purpose only, and not a legal disclosure document under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Law of Japan. Investment trusts invest in
securities that ﬂuctuate in price, so their base value will ﬂuctuate. As a result, the price may be lower than the purchase price. Additionally, investment trusts incur fees such as trust fees
set for each issue. The risks and expenses of each investment trust are detailed in the prospectus. Therefore, please make sure to check all contents of prospectus of each fundprovided by the distributors before applying for subscriptions.
Trade name: SAISON ASSET MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
Financial instruments business operator: Kanto Local Finance Bureau (FIBO) No. 349
Member association: The Investment Trusts Association, Japan

Financial planner designation

Consultation on all manner ofﬁnancial issues

Customers can designate a speciﬁc
individual from among nearly
100 ﬁnancial planners.

Users can consult regarding a wide range ofﬁnancial issues, including life insurance,
investment trusts, bonds, stocks, mortgages,
and real estate transactions, entirely online.

Nearly 100 ﬁnancial
planners available

18

Insurance
consultations

Mortgageconsultations

Asset
management

Achieving sustainable growthand improving corporate
value through soundcorporate management

Value Creation Strategy

Capital and Business Alliance with Suruga Bank Ltd.:Creating human resources
and an organization where
each person can fulﬁll an
active role in their own way

Enriching our customers’ lives
and enabling them to live
happily and true to themselves

Creating a better society
through co-creation
with partners

Protecting the rich naturalenvironment and culture thatenriches life, and energizing people
in the region and community

Creating a Neo Finance Solution Company
Credit Saison entered into a business alliance with Suruga Bank Ltd. in May 2023. In recent years, the business environment surrounding the Company has become competitive, requiring it todifferentiate itself from a wide variety of players because more competitors such as banks, securities companies, and insurance agencies are offering comprehensive financial services, whilebanking services have expanded through the use of BaaS. The business environment surrounding Suruga Bank is also changing beyond the traditional boundaries of the banking industry,
with general business companies now offering banking services and Fintech companies diversifying their payment services. Credit Saison and Suruga Bank will closely and rapidly collaborate
in order to create a new business model that combines the strengths of both banks and non-banks, with the aim of enhancing the medium- to long-term corporate value of both companies.
• Card loans• Credit cards• Housing loans• Asset formation loans• Speciﬁc-purpose loans• Flat 35• Investment real estate loans• Reform loans• Testamentary trusts

Individuals• Insurance• Business targeting foreign nationals• Real estate mortgage loans• Banking agency services• Real estate trust beneﬁciary rights sales• Guarantee(e.g., rent/loans on deeds/housing loans)

Suruga Bank

Bank

October 2023

November 2023

Collaboration in themortgage business

Collaborative development of
the real estate ﬁnance business

Commence handling of mortgages
with Credit Saison guarantees
at Suruga Bank

Commence joint provisionof “collaboration loans”

Suruga Bank

Neo Finance Solution
Company

Non-BankBank

Non-Bank• Ability to interact directlywith customers• Custom-made credit assessment/
credit screening capabilities

Provide solutions to address various problems
in the ﬁnancial ﬁeld and to eliminate AID*
* Anxiety, inconvenience,dissatisfaction• Extensive customer base
• Credit assessment/credit screening
capabilities developed throughimmediate credit granting,setting credit limits, andtransactions granting/setting

Total of all business ﬁelds over the next ﬁve years (FY2023 to FY2027)

Corporations• Business loans• Business matching (e.g., management issue support)• Advisory services (business succession, M&A support)• Structured ﬁnanceAim for ¥• Corporate cards• Real estate mortgage loans• Condominium management association loans• Medical fee factoring• Structured ﬁnance• Leasing19

350 billion or more in new loans

Summer 2024 (Planned)

Spring 2024 (Planned)

Establishment of Saison Branch
by Suruga Bank

Co-commercialization of
Saison Platinum Business
AMEX Card

Capital and Business Alliance with Suruga Bank Ltd.: Create a Neo Finance Solution Company

The ideal partner for
driving innovation

Katsumi Mizuno

Credit Saison Co., Ltd.
Representative,
Executive President and COO

Growing together andcreating new added value
To realize our corporate philosophy of “I’m glad you’rehere...I’m glad we met,” we raised the management
strategy of evolving the retail and solution businesses.
By seamlessly combining the broad range of functions
developed by Credit Saison in its quest to become
a comprehensive life services group with our retailbanking functions, I felt we would be able to create abusiness model that was better able to eliminate thedisadvantages faced by our customers over a broader
range of their everyday lives. Another reason I decided toform the alliance was because I was certain that working
Kosuke Kato
together would allow us to provide new added value to
Suruga Bank Ltd.
both our own customers and those of Credit Saison, and Representative Director and President
that Credit Saison would serve as a partner in aiming toachieve growth for both companies.
The most important aspect to succeed with thisnew business model that combines a bank and a nonbank is building a relationship of trust between the twocompanies. I also feel it is important to facilitate open
communication at different levels and between different
fields, not just at the executive officer level, as is typical.
We have already initiated steps to dispatch employees
between the companies and to engage in personnel
exchanges between departments for this reason. And I
have heard from our employees that they have found it
easy to discuss matters because the two companies have
similar corporate cultures, that they have been stimulated
in a positive manner, and that new ideas will likely
emerge. I therefore intend to continue creating forums
where employees can speak informally and openly witheach other and to deepen this relationship so that we canstimulate each other, grow together, and provide new
added value to our customers.

Banking functions are essential in both enhancing theservices Credit Saison provides to its customers andtransforming into a comprehensive life services group,a key goal identified in its Medium-term Management
Plan. Recognizing each other as a partner that is capableof maximizing corporate value, Credit Saison, as a
non-bank service provider with strengths in the retailbusiness, and Suruga Bank, as a banking institution,entered into a capital and business alliance by engaging
in seamless collaboration. Moreover, the corporate
culture of Suruga Bank, which has conceived of many
innovative services even as it functions as a regionalbank, has much in common with that of Credit Saison,
which I believe will enable the two entities to create newservices that do not currently exist in the market.
I believe that mutual understanding, respect, anddisclosure are essential to a successful capital andbusiness alliance. As both Credit Saison and Suruga
Bank move toward a common goal, I feel it is importantfor us to maintain a closeness that allows us to speakhonestly and in a way that transcends our respective
positions. This includes respecting our particular
corporate cultures based on a clear understanding of
our unique situations, and by constantly communicating
to ensure we maintain the same level of information as
the business environment changes moment by moment.
We have already initiated steps to exchange humanresources not only at the executive officer and generalmanager levels but also at the staff level. I believe thatfurther energizing communication and deepening
relationships will serve to generate true synergy.

20Value Creation Strategy

Global Business:
Interview with the Director in Charge

Achieving sustainable growthand improving corporate
value through soundcorporate management

Creating human resources
and an organization where
each person can fulﬁll an
active role in their own way

Enriching our customers’ lives
and enabling them to live
happily and true to themselves

Creating a better society
through co-creation
with partners

Protecting the rich naturalenvironment and culture thatenriches life, and energizing people
in the region and community

Focusing on the global rollout of the successful business model we createdin India, growing profits and ensuring financial inclusion for all

Q

Kosuke Mori

Director, Senior Managing
Executive Officer
Overall Global Business execution
Head of Global Business Division

How is the progress of the growth strategy “Accelerate
Global Business Development”?

In April 2022, we established our International Headquarters (IHQ) in
Singapore., FY2022 was a year in which we took a big step forward,
particularly in the globalization of our core lending business. In
addition to Vietnam, which has always driven our contributions to
profits, we have seen surging growth in our post-pandemic business inIndia. Given the successes in India, we leveraged the business model
we built and established our presence in Brazil and Mexico where,
similar to India, there are large Fintech ecosystems. In Indonesia,
we acquired JULO, a company specializing in digital lending, as anaffiliate company to grow our lending business in the market.
As far as our core investment business is concerned, theinvestments we made at an early stage approximately ten years ago
have appeared as a major gain on investment valuation. However, thecurrent global business environment for venture
investment has cooled due in part to uncertainty about the macro
environment, including rising interest rates. Based on this, we are
currently taking a more selective focus to our venture investments
but continue to be committed to our focus of backing founders in theseed and early stage who are solving important problems. We remain
on lookout for businesses which are synergistic with our lending
business and building networks in each market.

21

Q

Tell us about the initiatives being undertaken for
operations in India, which is experiencing rapid growth.

Upon first entering the Indian market our business model was BtoB
or BtoBtoC. By focusing on lending to underserved individuals andmicro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) through partner
Fintech players and emerging lenders, we have kept risks associatedwith credit and collection to a minimum. As a result of having raised
our local presence, we accumulated a vast amount of data andknowledge, and this has led to more business opportunities thanever before. Therefore, in FY2023, in order to scale up the business,
the B-to-C model was launched, taking the existing risk-diversified
business model to the next level. For individual customers, we offer
an embedded finance* service in partnership with non-financial
companies with a big customer base. Our lending products areembedded in their app, and we built our capability in managing
credit and collections in-house.. In addition, we are also developing
lending for MSMEs. In order to effectively communicate with MSMEs,
we have implemented a ‘phygital’ strategy since FY2022, which
integrates both digital and physical domains. This strategy leverages
our extensive network of approximately 40 branch offices establishedthroughout India. We are confident that this approach will allow us tobetter serve our clients and meet their needs.
* A system in which a company’s financial services are embedded within the services provided by
non-financial businesses and offered to end users; also known as “plug-in finance.”Global Business: Interview with the Director in Charge

Q

What are your thoughts on the factors behind growthin the global business?

Our lending business has grown even while responding to the risingcost of funding amidst escalating interest rates and regulatory changes
related to Fintech. The main reason for this is the strength of the local
team, which is able to think and act on its own, and IHQ and Credit
Saison that support it. Talented young professionals in the local teams
are actively engaged in the business with a sense of ownership, as if
they themselves were business entrepreneurs. Enabling us to achieve
the maximum potential of such our people is the existence of ourunique DNA and culture, which encourages people to think whilemoving forward without fear of failure. Moreover, the IHQ and Credit
Saison both work together like two sides of the same coin, providing
a strong foundation to support the business in areas such as financeand accounting, legal affairs, business development, and governance.
In addition, one of our strengths is the nimble decision making of ourmanagement team, which was able to give the go-ahead to enter Brazil
and Mexico a mere half year after commencing a full-scale market
survey, and despite us making initial inroads into India.
Even though we consider the expansion of our global business inthe face of high interest rates and rising geopolitical risks as a major
step forward, we cannot rest on our laurels and must continue to strive
for success. Whether we can scale up our business with BtoB and BtoC
business models, and whether we can expand it globally will be judged
after FY2023.

22

Q

Please tell us about your business strategy going forward.

We are confident that our global business will significantly grow, boththrough lending and investment business. We will pursue businessexpansion through our subsidiaries in India, Brazil, Mexico, andIndonesia. In our lending business, there are few synergies expectedby operating in geographical proximity to each other. This is because
each country has a completely different business environment. In
Southeast Asia, for example, languages, cultures and ethnic groups
are diverse, and the level of development of regulations, businesslicenses and infrastructure, including digital infrastructure, varies
from country to country and region to region. Therefore, we focus
on selecting regions to enter based on the scale of their Fintech
ecosystem rather than geographic conditions. We will continue toexamine potential countries to expand our business all over the world,
including Africa, Latin America, Central Asia, and Eastern Europe. In
addition, the most valuable resource needed to expand the global
business is human resource. Going forward, we will continue striving
to retain outstanding human resource.

Q

Please tell us your thoughts on contributing to the
SDGs through financial inclusion.

Our business contributes directly to financial inclusion and creating
employment opportunities, which are themes under the SDGs. As a
non-bank company, we are different from typical impact investment
funds in that we are an operating company with local roots,
committed to the market from a long-term perspective and engaged
in investment and lending. In the fall of 2023, we published our first
Impact Report from our IHQ to broadly inform the public about ourefforts. We continue to contribute to society by further promoting
financial inclusion.

Value Creation Strategy

Accelerating Global Business Expansion
Accelerating Global Business expansion
Credit Saison is expanding its global businesses mainly in Southeast Asia and India, focusing on core enterprises are lending
and investment. In addition, we established lending subsidiaries in Brazil and Mexico in FY2022, bringing the total numberof countries where we operate to seven. In the lending business, we work on realizing financial inclusion through lending to
the underserved*, and in the investment business, we pursue returns while at the same time creating synergies with existing
businesses through investments in startups by our corporate venture capital (CVC) in Singapore.
We keep contributing to the company’s growth by accelerating the expansion of global business driven by our IHQ in Singapore.
* Individuals and enterprises with insufficient access to financial services from banks and other traditional financial institutions

India

ThailandINNOVATION
Investment business(Fin)Tech-led INCLUSION and INNOVATION¥9 billion* Of which the lending businessaccounted for ¥3.2 billion

MexicoSiam Saison Co., Ltd.
Lending business forbusiness operators

Vietnam

INCLUSION
Lending business

FY2022
Segment business proﬁt

Kisetsu Saison Finance (India) Pvt. Ltd.
(hereafter, Credit Saison India)
Lending business for individuals and MSMEs(Fin)Tech

Credit Saison Mexico S.A. DE C.V., SOFOM E.N.R.
Lending business for individuals and MSMEs

HD SAISON Finance Co., Ltd.
Lending business for individuals
Saison International Pte. Ltd.
International Headquarters (IHQ)

Singapore

Saison Investment Management Pte. Ltd.
Offshore lending business centeredon emerging economies
Saison Capital Pte. Ltd.
Overseas corporate venture capitalIndonesia

PT. Saison Modern Finance
Lending business for individuals and MSMEs

BrazilJulo Holdings Pte. Ltd.
Digital lending business for individuals

23

Credit Saison Brazil Participações Ltda.
Lending business for individuals and MSMEs

Acceleration of Global Business Expansion

Accelerating India businessToward a further leap
Business strategy

Kisetsu Saison Finance (India) Pvt. Ltd.
(hereafter, Credit Saison India) engages in
the lending business for the underserved inIndia and has achieved remarkable growthsince the launch of its operation in 2019.

Through lending based on partnerships with Fintech players and others, Credit Saison
India has been building its business foundation while acquiring data and knowledge.
In 2021, it launched direct lending services based on this experience, and has sinceoffered strategic initiatives such as embedded finance and branch-led lending tailoredto customer types.
And it continues to differentiate itself from its competitors by diversifying its
businesses and to take on the challenge of high profitability business models.

Deploying multifaceted businesses through four business models

Credit Saison India is rolling out multi-product, multi-vertical strategies based on four businessmodels. As of September 30, 2023, it saw its balance of receivables grow to approximately¥150 billion and its consolidated contribution to profit in the first half of the fiscal year steadily
expand to ¥910 million, making it the primary growth driver for the global business.
• Wholesale
Lending to Fintech players, emerging
lenders, and other non-banks.
They are in charge of whole processof lending to end-borrowers, fromacquiring end-borrowers to collecting.
• Partnership lending
Lending through partnerships with
fintech players. Credit Saison India
provides loans to end customers andholds credit balance.

• Embedded finance (for individuals)
Lending through partnerships with nonfinancial companies. Credit Saison India
services are embedded in apps offered bycompanies who have a big customer basesuch as mobile telecom carriers, etc.
• Branch-led (primarily for MSMEs)
Direct lending, primarily to MSMEs.
Utilizes branches throughout India assales offices.

Stepped strategy from BtoBtoC to BtoC
Entry barrier

Direct lending
to customers

Changes in the balance of receivables
held by Credit Saison India
WholesalePartnership lending
Embedded ﬁnance (for individuals)
Branch-led (primarily for MSMEs)

Joint lending
with Fintech(Billions of yen)
250

Capital strategy

Credit Saison India has opened 40 branches
throughout India

200

Lending
to Fintech

150

Capital strategy

100

Credit Saison India raises strategic financing in order to support rapidly expanding businessand to ensure advantageous interest rates.
Credit Saison India received a AAA rating from Care Ratings, an Indian rating agency, in
March 2022, and a AAA rating from CRISIL Rating, one of the largest ratings in March 2023.
To date, it has borrowed from 28 financial institutions, including top local banks. Moreover,
it issued Credit Saison’s overseas subsidiaries’ first bond(Non-Convertible Debentures) lastAugust, and it has steadily been growing while gaining the trust of local markets.

50

02019 2020 2021 2022 2023

2023 (FY)(ﬁrst half) (forecast)24

Acceleration of Global Business Expansion

Beyond Asia to Latin America

Credit Saison India CEO’s interview

Credit Saison established subsidiaries in Brazil in February
2023 and in Mexico in March 2023, thereby marking our
successful entry into Latin America. Both countries havethe underserved who lack sufficient access to financial
services. while both have recently experienced rapid development in infrastructure (Fintech
ecosystem), partly due to government support. Based on the knowledge and experienceacquired through our business in India, Credit Saison will provide financial services tailored to
the local needs with the aim of realizing financial inclusion in Latin America.

Becoming a lending powerhouse in India

What are some of the initiatives and secrets that Credit Saison India
Q hasadopted to achieve its goals since its establishment?
We think “Execution” is a key in company’s operations and business. With this inmind, putting together a core team that can execute the planned roadmap is one
major factor in our success. At the senior management level, we have a great team
who have been able to work together to operationalize all areas that are needed
for a regulated NBFC to operate in India and scale up the lending business whileambitious but in a resilient manner.
Now coming down to how we have been able to execute this, I believe OKRs
(Objective and Key Results) have played a very critical role here to enable this.
OKRs serve as a method to set specific objectives to be achieved over a certain
time period, present and measure quantitative results. We have streamlined our
OKR process a lot over the years and we now have it in a state whereby it's a veryclear structure on what we need to do across all of our business verticals quarter onquarter and helps align various teams across all functions and verticals. OKRs haveallowed us to have cross collaboration across teams with a clear visibility of what
each function needs to do in order to enable our goals. In a nutshell, Execution is
King! But using OKRs to Execute is God!

Actively promote local talented resource

Investment Business: CVC
Saison Capital Pte. Ltd., Singapore-based CVC entity, have continued to actively invest
in early-stage startups in India and Indonesia. Saison Capital has led and participated ininvestments across fintech, business-to-business commerce and e-commerce. Moreover,in September 2022 we established Saison Crypto Pte. Ltd.. which has also led andparticipated in investments across real world assets, decentralized finance and web3
developer tooling.

Q What is your strategy for future growth?

The vision of the business as we got started was to build out a neo-lending
conglomerate in India. While many of other new age NBFCs are a mono line
lending company, we see ourselves asa multi-product, multi-vertical company.
We have ensured continued growth bycommitting to building a business withthe right foundation. With the right andoptimal capital strategy both from anequity (eg IPO) and debt perspective,
our aim now is to go beyond justbuilding out a neo lending conglomerate
and become a diversified lending
Presha Paragash CEO (left)
powerhouse here in India.
Kisetsu Saison Finance (India) Pvt. Ltd.

Web3 domain investments(examples)

Saison Capital member speaking on a panel for the Asia
PE-VC Summit 2023

25

Acceleration of Global Business Expansion

Publishing the Group’s first Impact Report
In November 2023, we published our first Impact Report for the Group by Saison
International Pte. Ltd. Saison International formed a dedicated team led by members who
have experience and knowledge of impact, and instilled the concepts of ESG and impact
across the global business to maximize the generation of positive impact.

On Publishing the Impact Report
First of all, we are pleased to publish our first Impact
Report and to be a part of this integrated report toshare our progress to the stakeholders. This year,
the focus has been on defining a relevant ESG and
Impact framework for the global business, to date
we have been able to implement this for some of our
subsidiaries. In the medium term, we wish to complete
this process by fully developing and integrating the
ESG and Impact lens in all subsidiaries to achievefinancial inclusion, that has been at the core of ourimpact strategy.
In impact investing, it is essential to 'measure'Marie Anna Bénard
to visualize how much impact has been generated.
Head of Impact
But some of our counterparties do not necessarily
Saison International Pte. Ltd.
have the data we request them to report. This means
we constantly need to raise awareness and adapt to
the reality of our business, and we try to improve impact data collection efficiency,
hopefully in more automated way. Besides, measurement is not all. Once we get thenecessary data, one critical aspect of our job is to increase our impact and incentivize
our partners to do a better job, e.g. in putting in place the necessary policies andprocedures to mitigate their negative impact on the environment or to better
protect their customers. Other than Financial inclusion, Climate has been a hot andemerging topic over the past years, and we believe there is room to increase ourcontribution and demonstrate our sense of innovation in this area as well.
Last but not least, Saison International has expanded its mandate, geographicalfootprint and team over the past years. Our assumption is that this should translate
into increasing positive impact, however, if we are not careful it could also
potentially increase vulnerability to environmental and social risks. Today, we aretrying to strengthen our capacity to measure and demonstrate our contribution topositive impact but also our internal capacity to manage and mitigate our potential
negative impact. By strengthening both capacities, we hope it will contribute to
Credit Saison’s growth and strategic positioning in Japan, and globally.

Impact investment goals and business models

Credit Saison provides loans to theunderserved in emerging countries throughSingapore-based Saison Investment
Management Pte. Ltd. as well as other lending
subsidiaries.
Major data
Number of borrowers

707,344

Number of loans disbursed

1,080,911* Excerpt from the Impact Report, all figures are from theend of FY2022

Improve the livelihoodsof historicallyunderserved individuals
and households

GOAL
02

Japan

Unlock MSMEs’
growth potentialand economic
opportunities

Credit Saison
Credit Saison
Group
Local lending company

Local area

GOAL
01

Loans
Borrower/Partner

Loans

Non-bank/Fintech
Loans

End customer

MSMEs and individuals

Feedback from service users
The mother of two children, Ms. Sophanaren opened aclothing and accessory shop five years ago.
“Although I had applied for loans at various financial
institutions in the past, I never passed the screening
process. So, the loan I received from MAXIMA Microfinance(a borrower of Saison Investment Management) was myfirst, which allowed me to increase my purchases.”

Phat Sophanaren (resident of
Cambodia)

Click here for the Impact Report (English version) visit:26

https://saison-international.com/impact/

Achieving sustainable growthand improving corporate
value through soundcorporate management

Value Creation Strategy

Revitalization of the Payment Business

Enriching our customers’ lives
and enabling them to live
happily and true to themselves

Creating a better society
through co-creation
with partners

Payment Business strategy basic concepts
The Payment Business is developing strategies aimed at expanding the wealthydemographic and corporate markets, shifting to premium cards, and increasing fee income.
We are making steady progress in the “New GOLD Card Strategy” and “AMEX Strategy”
in the current Medium-term Management Plan, cultivating high-unit-price/high-utilization
customers, strengthening sales structures, and reducing costs through DX.

To accelerate this growth, we will first strive to “create an exhilarating experience” and“provide a comfortable cashless lifestyle” for customers in their daily lives, thus retaining
new customers and turning them into active users. At the same time, we will work to expand
fee businesses such as shopping revolving credit and cash advances.
We are working to maximize revenues and profits by establishing a stable earnings
base that will serve as a foundation for growth, leveraging the abundant know-how,creditworthiness, and sales abilities we have cultivated to date.

1

Three Payment Businessstrategy pillars

Maximize revenues, proﬁts

Measures that will accelerate
growth in the future

Expansion from mass markets(individuals) to wealthydemographic and corporate
markets (sole proprietors, SMEs)

Promote use by
established customers
Ongoing foundation
reinforcement

Target strategy

Increase fee income

2

Strengthen thefee business

Establish a stable earnings base
Membership
structure reform

Pursue Group synergies

Organizational
capability, DX

Measures that will create afoundation for future growth

Shift from general cards
to premium cards

Create high-unit-price/
high-utilization customers

Wealthydemographics,
corporate3

Increase fee income
Shopping revolving credit
Cash advances

Strengthen sales structures

Abundant know-how,creditworthiness, sales abilities

Individuals

Other fees
(annual membership fees)

Reduce costs, increase
speed by pursuing DX

27

Revitalization of the Payment Business

Payment Business strategy in the current Medium-term Management Plan
To revitalize the Payment Business, we are acquiring customers such as individuals, SMEs, and those in wealthy demographics through the AMEX Strategy and promoting the use of premium
cards as their main cards through the New GOLD Card Strategy. We are encouraging a wide range of individual customers gained through cards with no annual fees to upgrade to premium
cards, with the aim of them adopting premium cards as their main cards to increase the per-customer spend and annual spending. In the corporate field, we are developing cards for SMEs
and wealthy demographics.

Establish a new model centered on the “AMEX Strategy”
and the “New GOLD Card Strategy”

AMEX Strategy

Individuals
Top-ranking cards

Credit Saison up until now

PEARL AMEX

Concept Card

COBALT
BUSINESSAMEXPartner Card

“Making customers
feel special”
First card in Japan to use “METALSURFACE CARD™” materials
Main beneﬁts• 1.4 million special offers, including ¥1,000 movie fares• Up to 5% points rewarded at convenience stores,
cafes, and McDonald’s• Complimentary airport lounge access,travel accident insurance• Bonus points awarded for every ¥500,000 spent annually

Expansion of wealthy demographic and corporate (sole proprietors, SMEs) markets

Shift to premium cards

Shopping spend per customer

Unit price around the switch
to premium cards

New issuance breakdown share

Corporate market
approx. 3.5x larger than
individual market

20182022 (FY)
Wealthy demographic (premium)approx. 12 pt rise
Corporate share approx. 5 pt rise

Approx. 20% rise

Approx. 8%
Approx. 8%
Corporate

Approx. 20%

Approx. 13%

Corporate

2022

(FY)

2018

2022 Medium-term (FY)targets

Unit price around the switch(annual average)
approx. 40% rise

20182022 (FY)
Wealthy demographic shareapprox. 5 pt rise

Corporate share approx. 10 pt rise

¥4.78
trillion¥5.28
trillion

Approx. 15% Approx. 20%
Approx. 10% Approx. 20%

Individuals

Individuals

2018

Premium

Shopping transaction value
breakdown share

SAISON GOLD Premium

Invitation

Proper Card

PLATINUM
BUSINESS
AMEX

Combining the special feeling of gold + beneﬁts thatmake you want to use it day-to-day to create a productcustomers will choose for their main card.

=

ROSE
GOLD
AMEX

The future of Credit Saison

Approach wide-ranging customer
demographics throughvarious alliances

SME

BUSINESSPro AMEX

PLATINUM AMEX
GOLD
AMEX

Promote cards to be used as a main card with the new royalty service SAISON GOLD Premium Card

*SAISON GOLD
Premium

Cardholder composition ratio

Share of members who spend
more than ¥1 million annually(individuals, SMEs)

2018

Premium card shareapprox.10 pt rise2022 (FY)approx. 30% rise

Premium

approx. 5%

FY2022

Corporate
FY2018

Individuals
2018

Premium cards
approx. 15%2022 Medium-termtargets

Before switch topremium cards(general cards)

(FY)

28

After switch topremium cards

20182022 Medium-termtargets(FY)

approx. 90%

General cards
approx. 75%

Achieving sustainable growthand improving corporate
value through soundcorporate management

Value Creation Strategy

Promotion of Healthy Growth andExpansion into New Fields for the Finance Business
Key initiatives in the Finance Business

Expansion of the Guarantee Business in the Secured Area

Growth of the real estate finance business

Joint sales

Step

2nd

IndividualSoleproprietors

Expansion of products in the real estate ﬁnance business(non-secured personal loan guarantees)

2013

Step

(e.g., payment product referrals)3• Partner ﬁnancial institutions:rdApproaching approx. 400 ﬁnancial institutions
Step• Suruga Bank commencing handlingof mortgages with Credit Saison guarantees

2003

Expand into the secured
guarantee businessEntered the mortgage
guarantee business (April 2022)

1994

2010
Commenced For ﬁnancial
institutions
operations

2016

Changes in the balance of the real estateﬁnance business

Expansion of products for business people, seniors,and corporations; Transition to operations basedon both “balance expansion” and “asset efﬁciency”(Billions of yen)

1,200

Expansion of the “secured” guarantee business

Aging society
Era of 100-year life span
¥20 million retirement fund issue(real estate mortgage loan guarantees)(Billions of yen)

1,000

Saison Asset Formation Loan Premiere

Mortgage loans Leaseback

PJ Loan

16 partners
Partner ﬁnancial institutions
Approx. 40

2023

Asset Formation Loan

Upgrade relationships withpartner ﬁnancial institutions

Changes in the balance of guarantees
CreditGuarantee

500

Saison Fundex
Corporation

600(Cumulative total ¥110.0 billion)

Credit Saison0

CreditGuarantee
2020

2021

2022

2023
1H

2023
(Plan)

Medium-term goal

0

(FY)

29

PJ LoanMortgageloans

Increase in the balance of receivables
through expansion of productsin the real estate ﬁnance business
FY2021–2022
Sales of asset formationloan receivables

Housing-loan
Guarantee

LeasebackSaison Fundex
Corporation

1985
Commenced
operations

1st Expand the non-secured guarantee business2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2023
1H (Plan)

Assetformation
loans

Credit Saison

Approx. 400

Creating a better society
through co-creation
with partners

We are steadily expanding the real estate finance business by implementing a variety
of measures, including efforts to expand products for business people, seniors, andcorporations. We are working toward further growth together with Saison Fundex.

While focusing largely on the unsecured area to date, the Company is working to expand
its business domain and bring it to a further growth phase by entering the secured market.
Building on our collaboration with Saison Fundex Corporation, a company that entered
the credit guarantee business in 2010, we will expand guarantee business activities in the
secured field.

Partner ﬁnancial institutions

Enriching our customers’ lives
and enabling them to live
happily and true to themselves

Medium-term (FY)goal

Value Creation Strategy

Integrating the Finance Business and the Payment Business
Growth of the rent guarantee business
In FY2022, younger age groups in their 20s and 30s accounted for a large part of enrollees,with approximately 55% of customers being in their 20s. By creating a route through which
credit card rent payments serve as the trigger for transitioning to use as a primary card, thiseffort helps to attract customers with high Life Time Value (LTV).
To further promote this initiative, we revised the organization in October 2022 toreposition the Rent Guarantee Department as part of the Payment Business Division insteadof the Finance Division.

Rent guarantee as an effective channel for attracting new customers
Centered on young customers
in their 20s and 30s

Attract members with high LTV
Retention of young people

30s and older

20s and under

40s and older

About 55%

Composition of
credit card members
enrolled via rent
guarantee
by age group

Because Credit Saison advanced DX for the rent guarantee business at an earlystage, we have been able to roll out this business through a combination of paperless
operations and automation, thereby allowing us to deploy it without investing humanresources even as operational volumes have expanded.

20s and under

About 30%

(Reference)
Composition of
credit card
members of theCompany
by age group

Application of DX to the rent guarantee business
Improve business efﬁciency through integrating rent
guarantee screening into credit card screening andthe shift of business processes to DX.

30s and older*Data for FY2022

Become the primary card

Grow them into primary cards leveraging card payment of rents.

Increase the use of card
shopping revolving payment

Contract for rent
guarantee
Sign up for a credit Increase the use ofcard of the Company
cash advancesat the same time.

Need for a considerable
amount of cash forpaying initial expenses
and cost of moving

Purchase of large
items such as
furniture andhome appliances

Long-term engagement
through transition
to a primary card

Growth of the rent guarantee business and DX promotion

The ratio of those in their 20s and younger enrolled
for our credit cards via rent guarantee is about double
those enrolled for our credit cards.

40s and older

Attract a younger
customer base

Start card
payment of rent

LTV

Become theprimary card

The average spending
per member who pays
rent through their credit cards isabout three times as high asthat of the Company.

30

Integration into
credit card screening

Shift to paperless
operation

Digitization ofmanual work

Speed up screening

Improve operational
efﬁciency

Reduce labor costs

Expand the numberof new customers

Increase processing
volume per person

Optimize the numberof personnel

Achieving sustainable growthand improving corporate
value through soundcorporate management

Value Creation Strategy

Human Resource Strategy:
Interview with the Executive Officer in Charge

Creating human resources
and an organization where
each person can fulﬁll an
active role in their own way

Protecting the rich naturalenvironment and culture thatenriches life, and energizing people
in the region and community

While taking advantage of each and every person’s individuality and strengths, realizing“a sustainable society that is even more convenient and prosperous than today’s”

Q

Kazue Yasumori

Managing Executive Officer
Head of Strategic Human
Resources Dept., Processing
Business Division,
General Manager,
Processing Business Division

Credit Saison has adopted the goal of strengthening
the capabilities of the human resource responsible forbusiness growth under its current Medium-termManagement Plan. What is the Company’s definitionof “professional human resources”?

The term “professional human resources” refers to employees who deeply
cultivate areas of specialization and employees who newly cultivate
areas covering a wide variety of the business. While refining existingproducts and services based on global trends and customer feedback,those employees who can deeply cultivate areas of specialization play animportant role that can grow one into 10, 10 into 100, and can sometimes
lead 100 to 0. In contrast, those employees who can newly cultivate areas
while experiencing a wide variety of business fields are playing a valuablerole in creating one from zero, regardless of the form of existing products
and services. In both cases, it is necessary to cultivate a high level ofperspective and broad outlook that enables the employees to achieve
the results required by management strategies while being aware of theirstrengths, aspirations, and social conditions.

Q

Please tell us about the main goals under the current
Medium-term Management Plan that are geared toward
the Company’s transformation into a comprehensive life
services group as well as the progress made, the degreeof achievement, and the challenges you are facing inthat transformation.

To play a part in “a sustainable society that is even more convenientand prosperous than today’s,” we need employees from diverse
backgrounds with a variety of experiences, ways of thinking, and work
styles to play active roles. Employees with a sales mindset who realize
digital thinking based on logic and a focus on customer satisfaction
are essential for creating a new Credit Saison. With the goal of creating
1,000 human resources who possess digital IT skills by FY2024, we will
have trained a total of 260 core and business human resources with31

digital IT skills at the Technology Center by FY2022, and will focus ondeveloping human resources skilled in digital IT through collaboration
between the Technology Center and each business division in FY2023.
I also believe that it is necessary to promote female employees andmid-career employees to management positions so that diverse humanresource possess the ability to make decisions. In FY2022, the percentage offemale managers (i.e., general managers and managers) was 24.9%, which
is not low by any means. However, because the ratio of female managers
is insufficient compared to the overall ratio of female employees in the
Company, I would like to take new initiatives to give all employees theopportunity to take on positions with decision-making authority.

Q

What is the particular focus of your human resources
strategy under the new Medium-term Management
Plan to be announced in May 2024?

There are three ideas that we are focusing on for our human resources
strategy under the new Medium-term Management Plan. The first is“strengthening the creation of professional human resources for deepand new business cultivation.“ Next, in collaboration with businessdivisions, comes “Human Resource Business Assist,” the building of
personnel functions by means of specific initiatives based on thecharacteristics and issues of the business divisions. Finally, there is“diversity based on work-life fullness.“
We will continue to address the creation of professional humanresources—for example, by expanding opportunities for dialogue in theselection process for our internal open recruitment system, which werefer to as open challenge, revising the assessment program with anemphasis on diversity, and strengthening the mid-career recruitment of
human resources who possess specialized knowledge—while revising
our operations and standards.
In the building of business division personnel functions, we willassign human resources to concurrently serve in the Strategic Human
Resources Department and at business divisions. This comes in response

Human Resource Strategy

to the situation where issues such as recruitment, training, labor,
organizational revitalization, and reassignment vary depending on thebusiness division, and responding with uniform operations and systems
is beset with difficulties. By understanding the actual situation in moredetail and attempting to resolve issues, we aim to become an entity thatcan ultimately assist in the growth of the business division from a humanresources perspective.
The term “work-life fullness” means bringing about fulfillment bothfor the Company and yourself, at work and at home, rather than justone or the other. We design systems and create environments to not
only accommodate diversity in terms of attributes, such as gender, age,disability, and nationality, but also to bring about fulfillment in a variety oflife stages as individual people. For example, employees have periods oftime away from work for reasons such as childbirth, childcare, and nursing
care, and the Company has put in place leave systems for these purposes.
If, however, employees wanted to leave the Company to acquire skills or
expand their knowledge, their only option was to quit. We are thinking of asystem that will change this common practice and allow them to return as
valuable assets to Credit Saison.

Q

Following on from 2017 and 2022, the Company madefurther revisions to the personnel system in April 2023.
Please tell us about the aims of those revisions andabout any initiatives that have been particularly
successful.

With the aim of enabling every employee to utilize their individuality
and strengths to take on challenges without fear of failure and to allow
failure as an organization to lead to growth, we have renewed our humanresource systems on two occasions. We unified employee categories,
organized grade categories, introduced an assessment program,and created a new career path called a specialist position, which isequivalent to a manager. The number of people being promoted to
specialist positions is increasing, probably because they have beenable to recognize their own areas of strength after having attended theassessment program and demonstrated results.
As career paths were previously limited to manager positions
primarily in the management field, I think this was a great source of32

anxiety for employees who were unable to envision their future careers
even after having cultivated their specialist fields. It is my belief thathaving achievements in their own areas of expertise recognized andthen having them proceed to the next step will produce significant
results for both our employees and the Company.
In April 2023, we expanded the eligibility conditions for taking theassessment program and made revisions that required applicants toapply voluntarily. Because autonomous career development is essential
for utilizing the diverse career paths provided by the human resource
system, we have revised the course with the aim of encouraging
participants to take on challenges on their own initiative and, even if they
fail, they can understand the important points and aim for the next step.
Initiatives such as study sessions androundtable discussions with experienced
people have expanded in FY2023 to encourage
participants in each business division, and I feelthat the vertical and horizontal connections that
go beyond work have become stronger.
A photo taken when participating in the “SAISON CAMPUS” company cafeteria renewal
project that led to the creation of opportunities for dialogue.

Q

As the strengthening of human resource gains inimportance, what kind of initiatives do you have in mind
for Credit Saison going forward? Also, please tell us
what you expect from your employees.

I would like them to have many conversations with people they havenever had contact with before, both inside and outside the Company.
Nowadays, this or that effect, such as time or cost performance, is being
talked about, but I would like them to have the opportunity to come into
contact with and understand many values without being limited to shortterm effects. To build “a sustainable society that is even more convenientand prosperous than today’s,” we will need the ability to discern the true
nature of things and the ability to think of ways to satisfy diverse values.
I would like to create a new Credit Saison together with employees who
are able to learn things they didn’t know, think for themselves, come up
with answers, and take action without being confined within individual
team, or company boundaries.

Value Creation Strategy

Human Resource

Strengtheningof mid-career
recruitment

Diversehuman resource

Meritocracy
free from age,gender,or educational
attainment bias

Transforming ourselves into a comprehensive life services groupDNA of facing
challenges
and initiatingreforms

Implementing effective, engagement
survey-based human resource policies

Supporting education forhuman resource who learn/
grow independently

1 Career advancement of

2 Corporate culture to

3 Proactive learning/• Strengthening of mid-career recruitment• Creating environments that make the mostof individuals• Work styles unconstrained by age orcompany careercom• Gender equality• Hiring of people with disabilities• Global synergies• Open challenge(Group-wide recruitment system)• FOC promotion meetings• NEXT SAISON• SWITCH SAISON• Fostering a willingness
to take on challenges• Assessment programs• Diverse training programs• Support for gaining qualiﬁcations• Support for career self-direction

diverse human resource

embrace challenges

Commonpersonnel
system for all
employees

growthPromotion of
DE&I

Corporate
culture toembracechallenges

3

4

Fostering awillingness toembracechallenges

FY2022 Actual

Targets

Mid-career recruitment

110 people up 59.4% YoY
No. of human resource withdigital technology backgrounds

260 up 73.3% YoY

FY2024

1,000

Ratio of female managers

FY2024

Ratio of eligible employees
taking childcare leave

FY2024
Males taking
childcare leave*
50%

24.9% up 1.6 pt YoY

Female 100% Male 58.5%

25%

180 people

Appointees 55 people
NEXT SAISON Results

10 projects in progress,

5 projects under consideration
Educationsystemrestructuring/
reskilling
Mental healthmeasures

Healthmanagement

Value Creation
OUTCOMEFY2022 Initiative Results
OUTPUTInternal recruitment entrants

Proactive
learning/growthThree points of focus

Recruitment
training of digital
savvy humanresource

Diversework styles

2

A group of professionals who continue to create new value

Creating environments
Fostering an
in which diverse human resource
organizational climate thatare able to leverage their individual enables the taking on ofstrengths and play active role.
challenges and allows failure

1

Careeradvancementof diverse
human resource

A sustainable society that is even more convenient and prosperous than today’s

Setting human resource KPIs,
measuring the level of awareness andeffectiveness of human resource policies

Points of Focus/Main Initiatives
INPUT/ACTIONCountermeasures
to lifestyle-relateddiseases

Amount invested in humanresource development¥137,000/person
up 8.4% YoY

Ratio of employees who
have undergone a stress test

FY2023

Ratio of employees who received
regular health checkups

FY2023

89.9%
100%

90%

100%

Ideal Vision

A comprehensive life services group thathelps to resolve the world’s problems

Credit Saison’s
Human Resource
and Culture
RESOURCE

Leading-edge service company

Since its establishment, Credit Saison has, in the face of various difficulties, continued toview people as the source of its value creation while taking on challenges as a leadingedge service company. Aiming for a “sustainable society that is even more convenient andprosperous than today’s,” for the very reason that we have now adopted “transforming
ourselves into a comprehensive life services group” in our medium-term management
vision, we are making active investments in human resource. These investments are basedon the idea that “career advancement and a willingness to face challenges on the part ofprofessional human resource who continue to create new value” are what drives value
creation to realize management strategies centered on the three points of focus of ourhuman resource strategy. That three-point strategy—management, business, and humanresources—forms a whole, and we will continue to create value that is unique to Credit Saison.

Initiatives designed to realize corporate value creation

Activities of and challenges facing diverse professional human resource who continue to create value

Human resource strategy designed to realize management and business strategies* Planning to quickly achieve targets set under the action plan (FY2022–2024) and to set new target values

TOPICS

Introduction of engagement survey

With the aim of each organization making self-directed organizational improvements
and implementing effective human resource measures, we introduced an
engagement survey for all employees in December 2023. We will continue to review
and implement effective measures to revitalize the organization and human resource
while closely monitoring employee engagement.

Workplace environments that
4 Health management
support the success of employees
Employees Materialities for sustainability

Creating human resource and an organization where
each person can fulﬁll an active role in their own way
33

Human Resource

Work styles unconstrained by age or company career

Career advancement of diverse human resource

In 2017, we introduced a common personnel system for all employees and thereby realized
equal pay for equal work. This has eliminated disparities in wages and systems based on
employee classification and age, while providing compensation based on the role played.
We are continually creating a culture and environments in which each individual, regardlessof age or career history, can fulfill an active role in their own way and create new value.

We believe that innovation is brought about by bringing together human resource who
possess diverse personalities, strengths, and values, including in terms of age, gender,
disability, nationality, lifestyle, career, and work style. Valuing the spirit of DE&I, we areworking to create environments in which everyone can fulfill an active role in their own way.

Strengthening of mid-career recruitment

Gender equality

Having respected diversity since the 1980s, Credit Saison has introduced a personnel
system that maximizes the abilities of each and every employee. With regard to promoting
women‘s empowerment, we believe that one of our key strategies is for female employees,
who account for more than 70% of our employees, to play roles in which they can have a
say and contribute to the Company, and we aim for the ratio of female managers to reach
25% by FY2024. To achieve this, we are implementing a variety of initiatives, including
holding seminars to support the balance between childcare and work. We are also working
to increase the number of male employees taking childcare leave, such as by holding
roundtable discussions for male employees involved in childcare. In addition to fostering aworkplace culture in which everyone can participate in childcare regardless of gender, we areencouraging women to continue working by sharing the balance of childcare and houseworkwith their partners while promoting work-style reforms across the Company as a whole.

To achieve our Medium-term Management Plan, we are mainly promoting the mid-career
recruitment of professional human resource to ensure diversity in knowledge and experience
as well as to break the mold of homogeneity. To accelerate the realization of our businessstrategies, we are creating synergies with members with different abilities. We have also put inplace a rework entry system that allows members who, due to various reasons, were unable tocontinue working and left to rejoin the Company under the same conditions as when they left,subject to certain conditions. In response to changes in the labor market, we aim to secure
ready-to-work human resources who can play active roles in our company.
Homogeneousorganization

Group of diverse professionals

Ratio of mid-career
personnel inmanagement positions

Innovation

Male Female

34.8%

Stable corporate
cultureFemale25.5% 16.5%

Generalmanagerequivalent

Employeegender ratios

Corporate culture toembrace challenges

Female Male
74.5% 83.5%

Creating environments that make the most of diverse individuals

To provide comfortable working environments for human resource who possess diverse
experiences, skills, and values, we have put in place systems that enable flexible work
styles, such as side jobs, telework, and flextime. Having also revised the compensation
system for specialized human resource, we are creating a multi-track career path, suchas creating a new career path called specialist position that is equivalent to a section
manager position, and promoting the creation of environments in which employees canmake the best use of their individual strengths and skills. We have also introduced a peerbonus system that allows employees to express their gratitude and foster a culture ofrecognizing each other’s achievements.

Male

27.8%

28.8%
Managerequivalent

Section chiefequivalent

Male

72.2%

Employment of people with disabilities and environment creation

Female71.2%

Data for FY2022

So that employees with disabilities can continue to be active in their own unique ways,
we provide a variety of work locations (e.g., assignment to various divisions, ubiquitous
office teams that cut out and consolidate administrative tasks, Saison Farm indoor farms)
tailored to individual characteristics and skills, and are working to improve such work
environments. We are also strengthening initiatives to support their retention, including
workshops to deepen the understanding of disabilities and interviews with employeeswith disabilities, the employees working with them, and their supporters.
34

Human Resource

Creation of global synergies

NEXT SAISONThis initiative aims to have executives exhibit leadership and consider the future of Credit
Saison together with employees to achieve management strategies. Executives themselves
take the lead in promoting a new Credit Saison, including creating new businesses
and expanding existing businesses, while involving our employees. This has led to new
initiatives, such as the launch of ReSAISON Co., Ltd., which was established in August2022 and aims to realize a recycling-oriented economy. Through interactions with top
management, employees also learn how to think from the perspective of managers.

At our overseas bases, we recruit members of various nationalities with a focus on local
hiring and are promoting local business operations under the leadership of local talent
by appointing local talent to our management teams. In addition, holding the SAISONGLOBAL SUMMIT once a year and providing opportunities to exchange diverse values, we
are working to promote DE&I through, for example, the sharing of details about businessactivities, religious understanding, and language support.

Corporate culture to embrace challenges
To provide new value to society as a leading-edge service company, we are fostering achallenge-oriented culture across the organization based on two underpinning factors: awillingness to take on challenges without being afraid of making mistakes and a climate ofcooperation with greater psychological safety. The challenges we face in further expanding
a corporate culture to provide added backup to employees as they themselves facechallenges will continue.

Open challenge (Group-wide recruitment system)

Based on our management strategies, we are recruiting employees for our focus businessfields, new businesses, and Group companies. In FY2022, 30.6% of those employees
who volunteered for recruitment postings were transferred to their desired departments,
where they are now taking on challenges and playing active roles in new fields, including
at Group companies.

Scene from a NEXT SAISON activity

SWITCH SAISON

We have been holding this program since 2019 as an internal venture program to help
employees bring their ideas to fruition in a speedy fashion. This program aims to foster aculture in which employees can spontaneously come up with ideas on their own initiative
and to improve their skills, encouraging employees to take on challenges. Four out of acumulative total of approximately 1,000 proposals have been commercialized, and a variety
of initiatives created, including SAISON TEACHER corporate lessons financial education
program and on-site lessons and employee YouTuber SAISON KAZUYA.

FOC promotion meetings

Giving rise to a flood of communication within and outside the Company, including Group
companies, we launched FOC (Full of Communication) promotion meetings in April 2023 topromote activities designed to increase the number of employees we know both inside andoutside the Company and to break down barriers to communication. Through four projects, weare aiming to increase speed toward business development by conducting activities centeredon all types of communication.

Initiatives designed to foster a willingness to take on challenges

The Company aims to create an environment in which all employees can take on challenges
with enthusiasm and contribute to the organization. Therefore, in April 2023, we reviewed
the eligibility requirements for the assessment program, expanded the eligibility, andchanged to a candidacy system. We are hoping that this will allow employees to take on
the challenges of advancing their careers on their own initiative, thereby leading to further
corporate growth.

FOC promotion meeting projects
DonGreen
Employee interaction
utilizing Akagi Nature Park

Interceding
Creating work environments
through interceding

TGIF
Interactions outside of workthat expand the community

Tarekomyu
Smooth internal
communication system

35

Human Resource

2. Specialized skill training

Proactive learning/growth

Each division conducts skill improvement training that combines training and practice in its
own specialized area, such as sales, finance, digital technology, and customer support, as
well as study sessions aimed at gaining qualifications.

As the transformation of our business portfolio continues, it will be necessary for employees
to transform themselves and to establish a culture of self-learning to realize management
strategies. Our company supports the learning of each and every employee who is oriented
toward self-growth and continuous development.

3. Training for managers

To facilitate the skill development of every employee, it is important for them to havesupport and encouragement from their superiors. Aiming to provide management withthe ability to produce results in difficult circumstances, the Company is providing its
employees with opportunities to learn management and ways of thinking to create newvalue.

Assessment program

In FY2022, we introduced assessment programs for promotions to manager equivalent andsection chief equivalent grades. By means of this program, employees clarify those of theirown strengths and abilities that need to be developed by visualizing individual abilities,
such as problem discovery and interpersonal collaboration, from a variety of aspects. We
aim to bring about improvements in the accuracy of skill development and for proactive
learning to be encouraged.

4. Optional training

We are providing systems that allow every employee to freely choose and attend training
programs commensurate with the level of competency they wish to acquire. While making
self-learning a habit, we are supporting behavior that promotes the growth of employees
and of the Company.

Diverse training programs

Tiered androle-basedskillsJunior employees

Mid-level employees

Initial orientation training

Promotion training

Follow-up training(New graduates)

Demonstrated skill
measurement program

Skill improvement training
SpecializedskillsManagers

Management

5. Saison learning

Resilience training

We launched this in-house tutoring system, which was developed based on a suggestion(NEXT SAISON) from an officer, in June 2022. Designed to invigorate exchanges between
employees and spur self-development, employees playing the role of instructor provide
in-house classes on various themes including business skills and operational knowledge. To
convey gratitude to the instructors, Eikyufumetsu Points can be gifted using a peer-to-peerbonus system.

Management update training
Harassment training
Training for newly appointed managers

Specialized skill improvement training
Support for acquiring work-related qualifications

Support for acquiring qualifications

Optional training
Selfdevelopment

In addition to qualifications that are essential for business operations, we also provide
support for gaining qualifications that are judged necessary for improving work
performance. We help turn employees into professionals by subsidizing the costs ofadvance learning and examinations to gain qualifications.

Saison learning
DE&I-related training
FP literacy improvement training

1. Tiered skill training

Examples of subsidized qualifications

We provide training for employees to acquire role-appropriate abilities and skills. Used asopportunities for employee proactive learning and career reskilling, we aim for this training
to lead to the growth of employees and the Company alike.

Money lending business specialist, Personal information handling specialist, IT passport,
Securities sales representative, AML/CFT standard, Financial planner, etc.

36

Human Resource

Support for employee self-directed career development

officers set examples worth following; make ahabit of enhancing the four vital forces of physical,
emotional, cognitive, and spiritual strength; andspread throughout the organization, we aim tohave employees continue to work with vigor andhappiness.

Centered on the career development sheet, a support mechanism is in place that allows
employees to think about their careers and take the initiative regarding their future. In
addition, supervisors at the department manager level and above gather once a year
and hold human resource development meetings to discuss in detail every employee’s
performance status, aptitude, and training methods, while also taking the wishes ofindividual employees into account. This has been ongoing since 2019, and we areformulating effective and systematic development plans from a multifaceted perspective
and building an organizational structure to support and develop our employees.

Independent consideration of one’s
career with a clear understanding ofstructural changes in a company’sbusinesses and shifts in the social
environment

Career development sheet(once a year)

Thinking about
the employee’s careerSelf-education

Examination of the training
and development planby the manager

Fully understanding employees’ traits
and characteristics while discussing
and formulating plans for thedevelopment of the employee andthe growth of the organization

Human resource development
meetings held by thedivisions and departments

Two-way communication
To create an environment in whichchallenges can be faced with peaceof mind, making rules covering
opportunities for employee tomanager consultations

One-on-one meetings(once a year)(once a month)

Employee growth tostrengthen organizational
capabilities

The forming of a career planby the individual

Activities to address women’s health issues

So that female employees, who constitute more than 70% of all employees, can continue towork in good health, we are implementing initiatives in response to their life-stage changes.
In parallel with the development of Femtech (a product and service that uses technology tosolve women’s health issues), which was proposed by female employees as a new business,
we are conducting seminars and internal awareness-raising activities based on the conceptof aiming to create workplaces where women can work in a healthy manner both mentallyand physically.

Career development sheet

Considering more speciﬁcally the employee‘s current
self-understanding, what they want to be, and the support andaction plan needed to achieve thisOptional training (OFFJT)Support from a variety of programs to assist employees to learn
on their own

Helping employees to continue working while receiving treatment

Through our Self-Management Assistance Program, we support employees who have been
forced to take a leave of absence due to health issues, be they mental or physical, so thatthey can continue working independently after they have returned to work. The goals andhealth condition of each such employee are checked at each phase, and their supervisor, anindustrial physician, a public health nurse, and the Strategic Human Resources Department
work together while supporting the employee during the leave of absence, when returning
to work, and after they have returned to work.

Professional training (OJT) Acquiring work skills from on-the-job training with the goal of
improving performance

Taking on
new challenges

Dream challenge
Open challenge(Group-wide recruitment system)

Creating opportunities to enable employees to declare their
desire to transfer to another department, supporting
independent career development

Initiatives to optimize working hours and promote a work-life balanceWith the aim of optimizing working hours, employees and their supervisors monitor
holidays and leave usage as well as the status of overtime work on a daily basis, while theTime Management Committee, including labor and management, advances initiatives toimprove working hours. Having established systems that support flexible work styles, suchas hourly paid leave, half-day paid leave, full flex-time, and telework, we aim to enhance andupgrade our employees’ work-life balance.

Health management
In the belief that that the realization of our management strategies is based on the health of ouremployees and healthy work environments, we are striving to create workplace environments
in which employees can continue to thrive and are thus promoting a variety of initiatives.

Resilience Program as an approach to top management

Average monthly overtime hours worked

To develop people and organizations that are strong in the face of change in the lead-up
to our third founding, we focused on the ability to powerfully lead an organization in timesof adversity (resilience) and implemented the Resilience Program for officers. By having

Total annual hours worked

Average paid holidays usage rate (%)
Average paid holidays used (days)

37

FY2020

FY2021

FY2022

1,797.2

1,787.4

1,768.8

13.1

14.0

15.2

9.3

72.4

10.1
73.5

11.4
86.3

Achieving sustainable growthand improving corporate
value through soundcorporate management

Value Creation Strategy

CSDX Strategy: Interview with the Director in Charge
Significant progress regarding in-house development
and other aspects of the CSDX Strategy

Kazutoshi Ono

Director, Senior Managing
Executive Officer and CDO, CTO
Group-wide DX Strategy,
Why SAISON Strategy
Head of CSDX Development Dept.,
Customer Success Division

In FY2022, we made significant progress in our CSDX strategy. Although theoriginal scope of our shift to in-house development was centered on software,data analysis, and design, we also recently launched an in-house development
team in the area of IT infrastructure. This expansion is allowing us to rebuild
our mobile device, network, security, and other systems into modern iterations
that are more robust and that offer greater flexibility and convenience. In otherwords, this past year saw the scope of our in-house development expand
beyond the application layer to include the infrastructure layer. In terms ofcustomer experience, we also developed several of our own systems related
to SAISON GOLD Premium that are currently in use by many of our customers.
And we have made frequent improvements to these following their release.
Another major example of progress was our successful in-house developmentof a new ID platform called SAISON ID, which enables customers with multiple
credit cards to log in using one ID.
Until recently, Credit Saison recruited and trained human resources witha focus on digital professionals hired from outside the Company (core digital
human resources) and on reskilled human resources that transferred throughin-house recruitment programs (business digital human resources). Startingin the current fiscal year, however, we have begun promoting digital literacy
acquisition for all employees. In this way, employees from business divisions
besides those involved in digital technologies and IT will, in accordance withthe characteristics of their duties, successively acquire no-code and low-code
tools that they will use to automate their own duties. Some business divisions
have already produced results through these initiatives. Similarly, in March 2023
we held an event during which the management team participated in no-codeand low-code boot camps of their own accord to show what it looked like totake action, thereby serving as a good example for this effort.
On the other hand, in FY2023 Credit Saison welcomed its 74th year inbusiness. And given this long history, we still see room for improvement in the
many manual operations and paper-based operations among those duties thathave continued unchanged throughout our history. Although we managed toautomate a total of 790,000 hours’ worth of work from FY2019 to FY2022, wewill accelerate the shift to paperless operations using those systems we havereleased since FY2019 and those systems that are currently under development.
Shifting to in-house system development will also do more than simply enable
automation and efficiency improvements, however. It will also allow us toaddress the rapid changes in the market and to make more frequent service
improvements, thereby serving as a powerful tool in continuously maintaining
our competitive advantages in today‘s rapidly changing environment.
38

Creating human resources
and an organization where
each person can fulﬁll an
active role in their own way

Enriching our customers’ lives
and enabling them to live
happily and true to themselves

Group-wide DX
The Technology Center, which as CTO I worked with two career-track
employees to launch in March 2019, has now been functioning for a full
four years, and as of September 2023 had grown into an organizationconsisting of 117 members. Today, the Center promotes in-housedevelopment and data use over a wide range of areas, from softwaredevelopment to data analysis and system design.
As the first phase of our efforts to establish an environment forGroup-wide DX, we launched in-house development teams fromscratch and implemented additional functions for our Saison Portal
smartphone mobile app while recruiting engineers and system designers.
We also advanced in-house development for the area of customer
experience (CX). In Phase 2, we further expanded the scale of these
efforts and conducted in-house recruitment programs for career-track
employees aiming to reskill themselves. In addition to CX, we aimed to
improve employee experience (EX). Specifically, we advanced in-housedevelopment of internal systems used by our employees and constructeda system that bundles together those business divisions involved in IT
and in-house development into a single business division so that theirrespective strengths mutually complement each other.
We will advance Phase 3 under the concept of DX by all Group
employees with the aim of creating an environment that will enablebusiness divisions to develop their own systems as a third option in
addition to in-house development and development by IT vendors. In
this way, we will not rely on efforts in which IT-related departments alone
advance digitalization but also construct an internal training system forno-code and low-code tools that will enable individual employees at theirrespective business divisions to effectively utilize digital technologies.
System development domains
Challenge

Phase 2
Achieved

Phase 1

Phase 3All employees digitalize their own duties

Shift to DX by all Group employees

In addition to in-house development and IT vendor
development, aim to create a system that enables
business divisions to develop their own systems.

Formulate CSDX and shift to Group-wide DX

In addition to CX, aim for improved EX and promote
cooperative in-house development of internal systems.

Small start of in-house development teams
Launch the Technology Center where in-house development
teams promote in-house development for CX purposes.

CSDX Strategy

Promoting in-house development through CSDX
Our in-house development efforts that initially began with the release of the new Saison’s
Otsukidama campaign have successfully gone on to develop more than 50 projects,
including mobile apps for SAISON GOLD Premium, internal API platform systems, improved
fraud detection accuracy, and our official LINE account. Similarly, these efforts have alsoenabled data use.

In-house development case study [1]: Customer service manual system
In August 2021, through an in-house development we converted our roughly 20,000
pages of customer service manuals into a knowledge system for the communicators
at our call centers, thereby enabling them to immediately search the required items
when talking with customers over the phone. We also reviewed the business process
for reflecting feedback from the front lines, and equipped the knowledge system witha function that feeds back the contents of these manuals. This effort has allowed ourstaff to respond to inquiries that they were unable to resolve on their own previously
and successfully reduced approximately 80,000 hours’ worth of work. We havecontinued to add new functions that improve this system’s accuracy since its releasewith the aim of raising the quality of customer service.

3 members
Launched SAISON ID

Opened the ofﬁcial LINE accountEstablished a workﬂow system

Launched a visualization dashboard

Issued SAISON GOLD Premium

Built an internal API platform system

Renewed the mobile portal app

Built an internal FAQ system

Introduced new fraudulent transaction measures

Established a data analysis teamPromoted no-code and low-code use

2023

2022
Built a knowledge system

Established the CSDX Development Department

2021
Started business digital humanresources recruitment
Established business division in-housedevelopment teams
Issued SAISONCARD Digital

2020
Launched Saison’s Otsukidama

Representative projects

Established the Technology Center2019

117 members
Began full-scale engineer recruitment

Members

History of the Technology Center

Releaseprojects

EX issue

53 projects

Improve overall
self-resolution skills

Share information
with a team easily

Updates to existing systems/Operational problems in business divisions/
Use of digital technologies, etc.

Search manuals while
talking with a customer
over the phone

Knowledge system

Add a bookmark tofrequently used manuals

As communicators use the knowledge system,
self-resolution skills are continuously
enhanced at the organizational level

Knowledge
improvement cycle
Revise manuals basedon workers’ opinions

Working hour reduction
effect -80,000 hours

Provide feedbackon the manuals

Review feedback
on a regular basis

Revising manuals in a timely mannercontinuously enhances knowledge
accuracy and improvement speed

In-house development case study [2]: Visualization dashboards

In August 2022, we began full-scale development of visualization dashboards using
Tableau, a BI tool*. Departments involved in digital technology have taken chargeof developing the dashboards for the primary sales coefficients for each businessdivision, sales performance at collaborating commercial facilities, and survey results,
and are working to develop these dashboards in cooperation with the businessdepartments. This effort has allowed us to replace the Excel-basedmanual data aggregation work and data processing work thatvaried by worker with a flow that updates this data in real time,
which is accelerating the speed of data-based decision-making.

Developer side and requesting sidedevelop systems in a fully combined mannerBusiness departments

Confusing manuals are not revised

Search manuals while
talking with a customer
over the phone

Self-resolving
cycle

Keeping the development of internal systems in-house aims to enable digital human resources
and business side human resources to “accompany” each other as we develop these systems.
Specifically, digital human resources travel to the front lines of the business departments todirectly experience the issues faced there as they work to develop systems intended to help
solve these challenges. This approach realizes a development system that creates simple
prototypes in-house and makes improvements as feedback is received from the business side.

Digital departments

EX issueUnable to solve an issue while talking
with a customer over the phone

Development
ﬂexibility
Development
cost reductions* Business Intelligence tool
Software that analyzes and visualizes different types of data held by companies, and aids in management strategy
decision-making and operations

39

CSDX Strategy

the issues faced by their own divisions. To enable all employees to acquire and utilize
no-code and low-code tools in the future, we are developing and have begun recruiting
participants for our own training programs in the current fiscal year. As part of these training
programs, we have prepared teaching materials that utilize the Company’s data, as well asverification tests that identify the status of knowledge acquisition, in support of knowledge
acquisition by participants. After acquiring this knowledge, those who have participatedin this training program are expected to develop and use dashboards that solve problems
faced by their own divisions.

Digital human resources
We categorize our digital human resources into three layers, where core digital humanresources possessing digital skills, business digital human resources possessing businessknowledge, and digital IT human resources who have acquired knowledge on digitaltechnology through reskilling engage in joint development as they advance digitalization
Group-wide.
Layer 1

Layer 2

Layer 3

Core digital human resources

Human resources who possess deep knowledge
and experience regarding digital technology anddata utilization and lead Group-wide digitalization• Engineers• Data scientists• Cybersecurity• Designers

Generative AI use

Business digital human resources

Human resources who not only possess businessknowledge and experience but also reskill
themselves on digital technology and datautilization, and promote Group-wide digitalization

Digital IT human resources

Human resources who possess knowledge
regarding digital technology and data utilization
and use such knowledge in their work

• Generalists +core technologies

In today’s business environment, we expect the use of generative AI to emerge as animportant element that produces competitive advantages. For this reason, we have raised
the promotion of generative AI use as one of the core challenges in the current fiscal year’s
CSDX. As of November 2023, we had developed our own ChatGPT specifically for internal
purposes, which is already starting to be used by every employee. Moreover, as a new systemdesigned to improve the efficiency of internal operations, we have begun developing ourown system that converts voice data from meetings at and outside the Company into text, andthat uses generative AI to prepare meeting summaries and minutes. We will continue to utilize
generative AI to drive innovation in new services and existing systems that serves to improvethe efficiency of our business and enhances the satisfaction of our customers.

• Citizen developers• Citizen data scientists• Digital marketers• Domain experts

No-code and low-code tool use
To expand the use of no-code and low-code tools, Credit Saison promotes reskillingfor all of its employees. The management team has taken the initiative in participating
in boot-camp training programs to gain actual experience in what can be achieved withno-code and low-code development. We have also issued concurrent posts for businessdivisions and digital divisions, where the individuals assigned to these posts acquire
knowledge on these tools as they promote the development of hybrid systems that solve

Underdevelopment

1. Voice data

6. Minutes andsummaryacquisition

MinutesrecordingsystemAdditional learning

5. Summary
generation
4. Text link

Regular sales meeting

2. Voice link

3. Text
generation

Are there any other topics?
Speaker A: Regarding target figure achievements,
Area A achieved 90% and Area B achieved 120%. Regarding

40

Text

Summary

Report on theRegularSpeaker A current month’s
sales meeting
sales status.

Thank you. Today’s agenda includes "XXXX" and "XXXX."

this difference, holding campaigns...

Speaker

LLM

Voicesynthesis

Speaker B

Additional
information

Topic xxx

Achieving sustainable growthand improving corporate
value through soundcorporate management

Value Creation Strategy

Financial Capital Strategy:
Interview with the Executive Officer in Charge
Rapidly executing investments that directly
connect to growth

Masaki Negishi

Managing Executive Officer
and CFO
Head of Treasury &Accounting Dept.,
General Manager, Global
Business Division,
In charge of Corporate
Planning Dept.

Although we are still engaged in ongoing discussions regarding the new
Medium-term Management Plan, one of the major themes is actualizing
initiatives that enhance corporate value in a way that goes beyond expanding
profit scale, while also holding medium- and long-term perspectives.
As an independent non-bank, Credit Saison achieves growth by deploying
businesses with localized characteristics both in Japan and abroad. In particular,
we are focused on creating business opportunities abroad and will therefore
continue to execute sufficient growth investments. And by enhancing the earning
power of the businesses operated by each company in Japan, we intend to
produce investment capacity and to enhance capital efficiency on a consolidated
basis. Similarly, we intend to advance these initiatives along the axes of profit
growth, capital efficiency enhancement, and capital cost optimization while also
combining short-, medium-, and long-term initiative time frames.
As part of the financial capital strategy, we must find a way to safely achieve
major growth as soon as possible amid the differing growth paces, asset scales,
and risks experienced by each business. For this reason, we are also seeing
a growing importance in discussions by the ALM Committee and Board of
Directors regarding management resources, and in particular their allocation
with an awareness that includes capital productivity. Moreover, because
strategies involving finance and capital are part and parcel with management
strategies (growth strategies), we are also seeing greater relevance for the
departments in charge of our management strategies, financial strategies, andIR to engage with the Company and the outside world in a unified manner.
In particular, to advance initiatives intended to realize management with anawareness of capital costs and the share price, we believe it is critical to holddialogue within markets as part of the story for the overall strategy.
To increase shareholder value, we must take action that strengthens our
corporate structure and that continues to expand our business. In addition, we
will strive to enhance internal reserves that will enable us to undertake these
initiatives, even as we look to return profits to our shareholders by making
suitable, stable, and continuous dividend payments to them in light of the factthat we are starting to make progress in establishing a foundation for profit
growth over the medium to long term. In this respect, taking into account thegain on negative goodwill coinciding with the transition of Suruga Bank to anaffiliated company accounted for by the equity method during the second
quarter of FY2023, we intend to offer a normal dividend of ¥80 and a special
dividend of ¥20, for a total year-end dividend of ¥100 in FY2023.
41

Enriching our customers’ lives
and enabling them to live
happily and true to themselves

Creating a better society
through co-creation
with partners

Approaches to realizing management with awareness ofcapital costs and the share priceWe will focus on the following three points as priority measures aimed
at enhancing corporate value and at achieving a PBR of 1 or more aspart of our efforts to realize management with an awareness of capitalcosts and the share price.

Components in enhancement of corporate value
Enhancement of corporate value Aim for a PBR of 1 or more

More than¥100.0 billion inbusiness profit

Profit growth

Improvement of capitalefficiency

Capital cost
optimization

Priority measures for enhancing corporate value
Improve the “earning
power” of existing
businesses

Business operations
with an awareness ofraising productivity

Stable and consistentdividend policy

Expand global
business

Reducecross-shareholdings

Flexible sharebuybacks

Boost “earning power”
through growthinvestment

CSDX strategy andhuman resources
development andactive participation

Strengthen investor
relations

Note: Details will be announced in the new Medium-term Management Plan (May 2024)

Level of surplus capital
Level of surplus capital factoring in future organic growth:Approx. ¥50.0 billion

Status of share buybacks
There is no change to the policy of implementing share buybacks,
which will be resolved separately by the Company’s Board of Directors
once there is a clearer outlook on the surrounding environment

Financial Capital Strategy

Medium- to long-term management goals

Shareholder returns and dividends
The Company believes taking action that strengthens its corporate structure and that
continues to expand business is important for increasing shareholder value. Meanwhile,in regard to returning profits to shareholders, we intend to enhance internal reserves forenabling these actions, even as we endeavor to make suitable, stable, and continuous
dividend payments to our shareholders.
We have not made any changes to our policy on returning profits to our shareholders,
and we plan to maintain a stable, continuous dividend policy as well as to continue toflexibly implement our share buyback policy at the proper timing.

With the aim of enhancing corporate value, the Group has raised maintaining andimproving financial soundness as a priority issue, and considers the shareholders’ equity
ratio (equity ratio attributable to owners of parent) and ROE (return on equity attributableto owners of the parent) as the most important indicators among the primary indicatorsthat are seen as important for management. As an independent non-bank company,
securing a specific shareholders’ equity ratio stands as a crucial aspect when considering
the Company’s credit rating and transactions with the financial institutions that serve as
our creditors.
Amid concerns of higher interest rates in the future, stable financial operations andmore robust risk capital management that supports such will become even more relevant.

Basic policy on dividends

Stable, continuous dividend

Medium- to Long-term Management Goals
Shareholders’ equity ratio(equity ratio attributable to owners of parent)

About 15%

Progress in linewith benchmark

ROE(return on equity attributable to owners of the parent)

Above 10%

Aiming to achieve in the next
medium-term plan or later

Shareholders’ equity

Shareholders’ equity ratio(Billions of yen)
700

Aiming to achieve in
the next medium-termplan or later
598.3

600

500

15.3%
490.9

15.6%
14.4%
484.6

Payout ratio
(Yen)
100

ROE
(%)
25

20

300

2018

4.7%

2019

6.5%

15

2021

¥45
¥35

20

7.5%

2022

¥70

40

5

2020

75

¥80

60

10

6.2%

(%)

FY-start

50

¥55

15.4%

530.9

7.1%

¥100

Special dividend
+¥20

80

562.3
15.6%

400

0

Dividend
per share

FY2022 around 8%

Due to the outlook for achieving the Medium-term Management Plan
target of ¥70.0 billion in business proﬁt a year ahead of schedule, theSuruga Bank becoming an afﬁliated company accounted for by the equity
method (July 3, 2023), and the revising upward of the full-year businessresults forecast, including the recording of a ¥20.0 billion equivalent togain on negative goodwill as share of proﬁt on investments accounted forusing the equity method, we will implement a special dividend.

0

31.4%

24.1%

19.5%

14.9%

2017

2018

25

2019

2020

24.3%

25.1%

25.5%

2021

2022

2023

Proﬁt attributable to owners of parent

0
Next medium-term (FY)¥38.3 billion ¥30.5 billion ¥22.8 billion ¥36.1 billion ¥35.3 billion ¥43.5 billion

plan or later

42(Revised forecast)¥64.0 billion

0(FY)Financial Capital Strategy

Basic approach to risk capital management

Major revisions in FY2022• ALM is introduced to measure risk and allocate risk capital for each business.
• Profit and loss fluctuation risks are measured by aiming at a confidence level of
99.75% using an Earnings at Risk (EaR) model to maintain an A+ rating.
• Remeasurement is performed regularly to reflect track record updates and changes
on the balance sheet.
Assets categorized by businessTop priority

Background to review of the Risk Capital Allocation Model

As a non-bank with interest-bearing
debt of approximately ¥2.5 trillion,
the Company will have sufficient
risk capital to maintain an A+ credit
rating from R&I.

Implement a review of the surplus risk capital allocation model
considering changes in the Company’s business environment,
including the outlook for contribution to business profit of the
Finance Business, which has grown into the second pillar, and
the Global Business to become the third pillar in a shift from thebusiness model based on the existing payment business.

Risk factors

Payment
Business

Lease Business

Credit guarantee
Business

FinanceBusiness

Real–related
Business

GlobalBusiness

Interest rate

Results of review of major items

Bad debt

Confidence level,
including EaR
required to maintain A+
credit rating

Price fluctuation

Basic policy of fund procurement
Basic policy

We will place importance on stability and cost when
diversifying our procurement methods and will maintainour conservative approach to financial operations as we
shift to long-term, fixed interest rate fund procurement in
preparation for interest rate increases.

Initiatives for reducing risks and procurement costs

Indirect financing:
Strengthen relationships with existing business partners,
cultivate new business partners, diversify procurement
sources, continue the basic policy on interest-bearing debt
Direct funding:Diversify funding methods, maintain a rating that indicatesa sound financial base

As of the end of March 2023, consolidated interest-bearing
debt (including lease debt of ¥13.9 billion):¥2,805.1 billion (debt accounted for 55.4%, corporate
bonds for 18.9%, CP for 17.5%, and securitizations for 8.2%)

No change

99.75%

etc.

Percentage of consolidated
shareholders’ equity to
be secured as minimum
required capital

20%

Revised to 15%

Sound financial base
• Credit Rating• Issuance ofJune 2017
April 2018
April 2019

R&I

¥10 billion¥15 billion¥12 billion

January 2021
October 2021

¥8 billion¥13 billion

Average interest rate
for fund procurement

Short-term borrowings
Bonds payable
CP
Liquidation of receivables

2,000

1,000

0

0.48

0.47

2,201.1

2,391.9

20.0
511.0

46.7
550.0

0.49

0.47

2,411.6 2,535.2
93.5
482.0

156.0
466.0

415.0

467.0

505.0

533.0

1,255.1

1,328.2

1,331.1

1,380.1

2018• Almost 70% of the interest-bearing debt iscomposed of long-term funds• Fixed interest rate procurement accounts forabout 60% of the total• A committed credit line, etc. of ¥ 480 billion issecured in terms of liquidity facilityA+

20-year bonds, first among card companies(Billions of yen)2019

Non-consolidated: finance-related business
Consolidated: review of Real Estate–related
Business/Global Business, etc.

Structure of interest-bearing debt

Balance of interest-bearing debt (non-consolidated)

3,000

Risk allocation model for each business

2020

43

2021

0.48

(%)

2,712.9
216.6
490.0
533.0

0.5
0.4

2022

Long-term ratio

(%)

0.1
0
(FY)

Fixed interest borrowing ratio

80
60

0.3
0.2

1,473.2

Long-term/fixed borrowing ratio (non-consolidated)

65.9

66.1

60.3

59.2

2018

2019

40
0

69.8

71.9

72.7

64.4

65.2

67.8

2020

2021

2022

(FY)