Has Japan become poor? [Migrated]

Please read here:

https://www.goldengoo.se/2026/06/20/has-japan-become-poor/

Ever since the bubble in the 80s, people in Japan have been saying how they are poor now.  Sure, compared with the bubble period, the average income has decreased - but by definition, that's always going to be the case with any bubble.  

In checking figures, I am purposely choosing a measure that makes Japan look poorer than it is.   That is Annual Household Income Per Capita in USD.  Why is this measure pessimistic? 

    Well, Japan has a lot of single earner households, so looking at the household figure will make this look lower for countries like Japan, and better for countries that have multiple income earners.  What's more, many Japanese households have extended family members like grandparents living together with the family which lowers the number further.  This is still to some extent fair, since after all, all of the family members need to eat.  

    Secondly, the yen has been weak against the USD lately, which means that these figured will look lower than the actual drop in purchasing power due to inflation.  Again, this figure is not completely unfair since many goods for sale in Japan are purchased from overseas, and some of those are paid for in USD.  On the other hand, many goods are produced domestically, so the exchange rate doesn't matter as much for those.  

    The average Japan household income per capita in 2024 was $15,500 USD.  (Compared with $22.7k in 2012 and $14.8k in 2002).  

    For reference, here is the same number for the following countries:

• China: $4,805
• France: $28,072
• Germany: $33,631
• Malaysia: $5,731
• Mexico: $3,690
• Singapore: $38,976
• South Korea: $19,230
• Switzerland: $60,075
• Taiwan: $16,605
• Thailand: $3,740
• UK: 34,805
• USA: $40,722

Looking at this, Japan is well above most other countries in Asia, but loses to Korea and Singapore, and just barely to Taiwan.  European and North American countries are quite a bit higher.

Looking at a more forgiving number, the average salary in Japan, the number is 6,200,000 for 2024, which works out to $39,818 using the exchange rate from 2024-May.  The number is 6,400,000 for 2025, which works out to $44,471 at current (June 2025) rates.  

Using the 2024 number, you can think of this as being basically $62k USD when purchasing local goods, and $39k when purchasing foreign goods.   Since most people purchase a mix of local and foreign goods the reality is somewhere in the middle.  

When you divide by the number of family members per household, the number drops to the $15k USD number listed above.  For most families, the most important components of that will be housing and food.  

Housing in Japan is not directly affected by exchange rates, and is relatively stable.  Even in Tokyo, housing is also very much cheaper than housing in large Western cities.  Medical care is also inexpensive compared to countries such as the US.  

This means that even with a relatively lower salary, there may actually be more disposable income.

Having said that, there has been mild inflation in the last year, and certain goods have risen more than average.  To consumers not used to yearly inflation, this has come as a shock.  People tend to notice the things that have gone up more than the average, and not notice the things that have actually dropped in price.  

Since it isn't fair to compare these numbers directly when the cost of living is significantly different, there is a concept called Purchasing Power Parity, which allows you to adjust the numbers for the cost of living in each country.  When you do that, you'll see things quite a bit differently.  

In this chart, you can see that the adjusted household income is more like $20k after adjusting for purchasing power.  This still doesn't mean that people are living half the lifestyle they would have in the US, because the conversion rate doesn't fully account for transportation and housing being cheaper - or interest rates being so much lower in Japan.  

Many companies have started instituting salary raises based on cost of living, but it will be a while before these policies are widely in place and keeping up with inflation.  

In the meantime, the situation continues to be that the average Japan is "poorer" than they were during the bubble years, but not poor by any means.  The last two years have seen inflation after over a decade without it, which will make a lot of people feel a bit poorer for a few years while they get used to the change.  This is mainly relevant to the average person with respect to food prices.  

Many people in Japan seem convinced that Chinese people are rich.  This comes from several observations:

1. China surpassed Japan to become the world's 2nd largest economy by GDP in 2008 (This is based on perhaps suspicious figured provided by the Chinese government, but even if the real date was 2009 or so, it's certainly #2 by now).

2. Japanese people see rich tourists visiting Japan all the time and spending a lot of money.  

What people don't necessarily realize is that comparing GDP is not meaningful when countries have a population difference of around 10 times.  In fact, having a population that is 10x larger with around the same GDP simply means the average GDP per capita  of China is roughly 10% of Japan's.  

Using the latest numbers (October, 2024) of GDP per capita, China has $13,870 while Japan has $35,610.  These numbers don't add up, but one thing is clear, the average income per person is much lower in China than in Japan.  The numbers for South Korea and Taiwan are very similar to Japan, while Singapore clocks in at $93,960!  

So yes, the numbers in China have been on the rise, and the numbers in Japan have been falling, but a large part of that is due to the unfavorable exchange rates.  These numbers will likely improve when the US lowers interest rates.  Also, note that the average income in Japan is roughly 3x that of China using most any measure.  

The issue with China is that:

1. There is a very large population, so even is you only look at the top 1% earners, there will be a lot of people.  Some of those people will want to come to Japan.

2. Income inequality in China is much worse than in Japan or the US.    

And only the wealthy Chinese people will be tourists coming to Japan to spend their money.  This is of course true in general with tourists to any country.  Add to this the fact that the weak yen has made Japan an attractive market for tourist recently, and it shouldn't be surprising to see many visitors from other nearby Asian countries.  This is neither good nor bad, just a reality.  It does mean, though, that people in Japan shouldn't assume that suddenly all Chinese are wealthy - because that is certainly not the case.  

There has also been a fear in some countries, including the US and Japan, that foreigners will buy up all the land.  It seems to me that this fear is semi-valid, but the solution is simple.  Some countries, such as India and Thailand don't allow foreigners to buy land at all.  While that seems a bit overkill, it would be easy enough to implement a  system where we only sell land to citizens of countries who also allow Japanese people to buy land there.  This would immediately rule out China, since even locals can only "buy" land from the government there for 70 years, which is technically renting.  

Back to the point of the article.  It's true that with the weak yen and inflation, things are feeling more expensive in the few years so - in fact prices have increased about 10% in the last 5 years.  That's in line with the inflation rates of most developed economies, by across the board increases with salary have not yet caught up for everyone.  

On the other hand, it's also true that you can get a livable apartment in one of the safest and most vibrant cities in the world (and one that also happens to be the biggest), in a democratic country with a rich culture, and fantastic public transport -  for under $500 per month.  You can likewise eat for around the same amount - meaning you can live a reasonable life in the biggest city on earth even at minimum wage.  

Sources:

https://www.ceicdata.com/en/indicator/japan/annual-household-income-per-capita

https://www.salaryexplorer.com/average-salary-wage-comparison-japan-c107

https://www.imf.org/external/datamapper/NGDPDPC@WEO/CHN/HKG/JPN/KOR/SGP/TWN

Financial Paranoia 5 - Things we don't need for online banking

 There are several "Privacy tools" that are often recommended which are not necessary nor suitable for online banking.  

About TOR

The purpose of TOR is to make it difficult to for your ISP or the government to tell what sites you are visiting.  With normal HTTPS web sites, the contents of your session are encrypted, but the URLs are easily visible in your internet traffic.  TOR also makes it very difficult for the web sites you access to determine your IP address, and thus your identity or location.  

This makes sense in scenarios where you want to anonymously access blocked or illegal web sites without logging in.  This is why TOR is often used by journalists and activists in countries with governments that have strict punishments and very restrictive ideas on what people should be able to access or post.  This is also why TOR is often used by criminals looking to buy illegal drugs, access illegal pornography, sell stolen credit card numbers, etc.  

For accessing online banking, we generally aren't trying to hide the fact that we are accessing, say, Mitsubishi bank.  In general, it's fine if the government or your ISP knows that you are accessing online banking.  Likewise, since you are going to log into your bank account anyway, the bank will know who you are.

Since TOR could be used by bad actors who have hacked your account to log into your bank, many banks will actively block connections from TOR exit nodes.

Using TOR to access web sites is also usually quite a bit slower than accessing sites directly.  

So, TOR is not recommended for accessing your financial accounts.

About VPNs

The idea behind consumer VPNs is to encrypt all of the data transported, including URLs, and any other data that might normally be unencrypted - but this encryption only lasts until it reaches the VPN exit point.  Another possible advantage is that by choosing an exit node in another country, you can make it appear that you are accessing a site from another country than the one you are actually in.

While this may provide an extra layer of security if you are accessing your banking accounts from somewhere like a Cafe WiFi hotspot - but in general it shouldn't be necessary since banking sites use HTTPS encryption anyway, and it isn't usually a problem is the URLs you are visiting are known by 3rd parties.  

Further, banks may block foreign IP addresses and known VPN servers for similar reasons to TOR.

The end result is that accessing your accounts via a VPN may be slightly slower than accessing them directly, and some banks may block you.

About Tails

The purpose of systems like Tails is to make sure no evidence at all remains on your PC of which sites you have accessed.  This means no cookies, no browser history, cache, etc.  

This may be useful for journalists operating on adversarial environments, spies, and those visiting sites only used for illegal activities because if law enforcement confiscates and analyzes your PC, they will find no evidence of your activities.  

Again, since we generally don't need to hide the fact that we were accessing banking web sites (and they will have access logs anyway), Tails and other zero evidence systems are of limited usefulness in banking. 

There is a limited advantage to using Tails in that if a running Tails instance is hacked, it will be reset back to a non-hacked state when it is rebooted since the system itself is read-only.  This advantage can be emulated by running a VM on your normal OS, and reverting back to a post-install snapshot after every run.  

Summary

Running a locked down and hardened system is recommended for banking to reduce the change of successful attacks, however running systems designed to hide or erase your online activity is not typically necessary or useful.  

System hardening is a separate and complex topic, but there are a few simple things you can do:

1. Don't use an Administrative account for daily use - It's too easy to get tricked into approving something you didn't mean to do.  

2. Use a separate Windows / OS X / Linux login for banking related tasks - The OS has separate accounts for keeping data separate.  While the protection isn't perfect, it's better than nothing.  

3. Make sure your system is up to date - Security flaws are found and fixed all the time.  

4. Enable any firewall software - Prevent connections to your computer from random machines on the internet.  

5. Uninstall unused software and turn off unused services - Software & services can often have vulnerabilities.  For example, turn off remote desktop and file sharing if you don't use them.  

Financial Paranoia 4 - The Bare Minimum - Password Manager & Separate Usernames

 In the last installment, we discussed using a separate email account, email aliases, and a separate smart phone for online banking and credit cards.

All of this compartmentalization will go to waste, however, if you use the same username and password for your banking sites/apps as you use for things like Reddit and Facebook.  

Using a separate password for each site requires either an ironclad memory, a big paper notebook, or a password manager.

The Password Manager

For low priority non-financial sites, I recommend using something like ProtonPass or BitWarden to manage your accounts and passwords.  These work accross smart phones and PCs, sync your passwords, and are easy to use.  

For banking related stuff, however, I recommend using an offline password manager such as KeePass.   This is simply because it can't be hacked if it's not in the cloud.  You can keep this data on a USB flash drive, and attach that to your computer or phone only when you need it.  

A word of warning about USB flash drives, though.  You should make a backup to a secondary drive at least once every month or so, and you should keep it in a safe place where you won't lose it.  If you lose this drive or it breaks, you could very well lose access to all of your accounts.  

For most financial related sites, you will need some sort of username, which will typically be one of the following:

1. An Account number
2. An email address
3. A separate username

When an account number is used, you will typically not have any choice in the matter, but at least the account number will be unique.

When an email address is used, you can make it unique by using an alias. 

When a separate username is required, this will sometimes be created for you, and sometimes you can choose it yourself (or change it later).  

Since you are using a password manager anyway, I would recommend that you create a separate un-guessable username for each site when you have the opportunity.  

Either way, you for sure want to use a separate hard to guess password for each site.  Most password database tools have a feature that can generate the passwords for you.  Sadly, some sites will only accept relatively short passwords or not allow special symbols.  Use the longest password possible, as you will normally only have to copy & paste to input it.  

You might want to use easy to remember and enter passwords like "Happy-toaster-Fossil-345$" instead of "DdfhjfREgGcED32T42%#!k1$" in case you have to enter them manually ona phone keyboard or something, but even then it is usually only a one time thing.  

Once you have completed the above...

Congratulations!

You have now virtually eliminated the risk that anyone can log into any of your accounts via a password list from data breaches they purchased online.  In fact, they won't even be able to figure out your username, much less password in most cases.  

Financial Paranoia 3 - The Bare Minimum - Separate smart phones & emails

 In the last two installments, we discussed Social Engineering and Phishing, as well as the danger of password re-use.

With reguards to social engineering, the best antidote is probably increased vigilence, however I am here to propose some real world solutions to the more technical attacks.  

We'll start with the most minimal changes you can make without much inconvenience or cost, and we'll more onto more sophisticated options in future installments.  

First, since enhanced security is almost always a trade-off, let's discuss why you might be willing to endure the inconvenience in exchange for more security.  

Value Proposition

If, like many people, you don't have much money in your bank account, you might think that there isn't much to protect - but immagine that you only have $500 in your bank account, and scammers steal it.  You lose your time and effort to reset your accounts, etc., and also the only $500 you had in the world.  Worse yet, if they managed to steal your credit cards, information then they may have stolen money you didn't even earn yet by spending money on your credit cards.  Sure, perhaps you can get that money back after everything is sorted out, but this can be a long and time consuming process and you may have to pay in the meantime.  

On the other hand, if you have a lot of money in the bank, then there is more for the criminals to steal.  This means you have more to protect.  Likewise, your credit cards likely have higher limits as well.  

Step 1: Separate Banking Phone & Accounts

If you are like most people, you probably use a smart phone for some of your online banking, and possibly a computer as well.

The first "trick" is to get a second phone, one dedicated to banking.  Many people already have an old phone laying around from their last upgrade, or could get one relatively easily.  

It would be ideal if you got a separate SIM card with a separate number for your banking phone, however we'll cover that in a future installment.  For now, we'll assume you're going to go with WiFi.  

The first thing to do is to do a factory reset on your old phone, and update the operating to the newest version.  

If it's an android phone and you need to log in using a Google account, create a new one specifically for banking.  Likewise, if it's an iPhone, perhaps you need to register a new Apple account.  

When creating this email address, ideally use a random looking address that has nothing to do with your real name or normal email address.  For example, if your real name is "Akiko Wada", then won't use AkikoWada56, use ChochoHima12.  The idea is that you will only use this email for banking, so you'll never use it to post to social media and the like, and nobody (Except your banks and credit cards) should ever know what it is.  

Make sure you use a different password than your normal account.  Also, don't use your existing account as a backup account allowed to reset your normal account.  You don't want someone who compromises your normal account to be able to use that to reset your banking account.  

Make the password for your banking account sufficiently long, and set it to require an OTP when you log in if that's an option.  You can put the OTP (Authenticator) app on your normal phone for now if you like.  

There are probably apps on the phone that you don't need that will be installed by default - particularly on carrier branded Android phones.  Uninstall or disable as many of these as you can.  

Next, verify the login and password for each of your banking apps, and then uninstall them from your normal phone unless you will need them while you are out and about.  Ideally you should have a separate spending money account that isn't connected to your payroll, but more on that in a future installment.  

Install these banking apps on your Banking phone and log in.  Since we'll be using your normal phone number for now, keep your normal phone handy to receive any SMS confirmations.  

I would also highly recommend that you use ProtonMail for banking purposes, a free account is fine for now.  If you already have a Protonmail account, then sign up for a new one just for banking.  

Next, you'll want to log into each of your online banking and other finance related accounts (Credit cards, brokerages, etc), and change your email address to the new banking specific one you just created.  Before you do that, though, let me sell you on another idea.  

If you don't mind too much, it's best to create a separate account for each and every bank, credit card, etc., that you use.  You don't actually have to create separate accounts, though, as you can use so-called +Aliases.  This will work with either Gmail or Protonmail, but with ProtonMail, there is the added advantage that you can send from these addresses as well.  

How does this work?  You simply register mail addresses with each company as follows:

If your real email is xxx@yyy.zzz, you use xxx+ccc@yyy.zzz, where ccc is the company.

• beavis234@protonmail.com (Real/Main Address)
• beavis123+mitsubishi0114@protonmail.com
• beavis123+smbc1102@protonmail.com
• beavis123+mizuho1204@protonmail.com

etc.  Here I also added a number at the end to make it harder to guess.

The advantage of these types of aliases is that they are widely supported, and free.  You also don't have to create them beforehand, you can just make them up on the fly and use them.

The main disadvantage is that someone can tell your real address simply by looking at them and removing everythign between the + and @ symbols.  You also can't easily block mails to such an alias. 

So why bother?  

a. You avoid giving out your "real" address, and potentially avoid spam.

b. You can use it as a check later on to see if emails are legitimate.

c. You can use it to create forwarding rules, etc. in the future.

Whether your use the aliases or not, update each bank account to use the banking email (either normal or alias).  

If you log into your banking email on a PC, do it in a private window, and don't let your PC remember your username or password.  Log out once you are done.  

Once everything above is complete, I would recommend you switch any banking related OTP settings to use an authenticator app on your banking phone, then the separation between your work and financial online identities will be almost complete.  

If you are in the US, then I would consider setting up a Google Voice number for your banking phone, if not, then we will cover setting up a separate number for banking in a future installment.  

Congratulations:

Once this step is done you will have the following enhanced security:

1. If your normal phone is hacked, it won't give anyone access to your financial accounts since there are no banking apps on it.

2. Your banking phone is much less likely to be hacked since it doesn't have any non-financial apps.

3. Accessing your normal email via PC or phone won't give anyone any information in your finances or any way to break into your accounts.

4. If you see an email on your normal account from a bank, you will immediately know it's a phishing attempt (since all your banks will only email your baking email).

5. You are much less likely to receive phishing emails to your banking email address since you only use it for banking.

6. If your normal phone is lost or stolen you don't need to worry about banking apps being lost, and you will still have access to your critical banking apps.  (Leave your banking phone at home and turned off when you don't need it).  

7. If you used aliases, then you can easily tell when an account and the sender don't match.  For example, if you used beavis+mitsubisi0114@protonmail.com with Mitsubishi, then all emails from them should arrive at that address only.  When you receive an email from them, you can check the "to" line to make sure it's correct.  (This is where using a number at the end makes it harder for anyone to guess the correct address).  

8. If your mail account is compromised, they won't be able to use it to figure out where you bank, which credit cards you have, etc.  (You did remember to delete all old mails from those places, right?)  

9. As an added bonus, you won't need to set up all your banking apps and authentication again next time you upgrade or change your mail phone.  

10. Since you don't need to keep your banking phone with you most of the time, you can keep it at home in a safe place so there will be much less risk of it being lost or stolen.  

Financial Paranoia 2 - Phishing, Account Takeover, Password Re-use, and Typo URLs

 In the last installment, we discussed social engineering scams that were more about misleading trusting people than any technical measures.  This time we will touch on more technical methods of stealing your money.

1. Phishing

Although the term is plain silly, the activity is anything but.  Although there are many variations, this is typically when someone tried to convince you to log into a fake bank web site, etc. through a link in an email.  

It's not always banks, though, email accounts, shopping sites, and delivery services are common targets.  

I get these all the time for Yamato express and other delivery services and Office 365 and occasionally for Gmail.  

The message will usually say something like: Your account will be closed due to non-payment (so log in and update your payment information), your account needs to be re-verified for security reasons (so log in and answer some security questions), etc.

If you click on the link in the email or SMS, it may take you to a page that looks deceptively like the real web site, where you will enter your login information.  They can collect this information, and use it to log in as you to the real site.  The real site may ask them security questions when it sees you logging in from a new computer, but if they have already collected those from you, then it's not a problem.  

Worse yet, things like smart phones and one time password confirmations don't always help if they are attempting to log in with your information in real time.  For example, you enter your username and password into the fake site, and it asks you for your OTP.  Unsuspecting, you enter your OTP, and if they use it immediately, they can now log into the real site with your username, password, and OTP.  

The goals of the attacker can be anything from getting control of your email to use it for spam, buying stuff for themseves (especially gift certificates) from Amazon, redirecting your packages, all the way up to getting control of your bank account.  

Not only might they steal your money, but they might use your account to accept money they scammed from other people in an attempt to hide their idenrity.  

There are various mitigations, including never clicking links in emails for any kind of shopping or banking site, checking the link URLs carefully, checking the sender name carefully, installing anti-phishing software, etc. - but even the most careful person can get tricked occasionally.

All it takes is one wrong click.  

I have some additional suggestions, but we'll go over those in a future entry.  

2. Password Re-use

We've all heard the advice to use different passwords for different accounts and services - but why?  

The main reason is that if the password for one of your accounts is leaked via a data breach or phishing, then the attacker can try that password with your other accounts.  

For example, let's say you have an account with Rakuten Shopping, and their customer database is breached.  This information is collected into lists, and bought and sold by crackers on the dark web, and whoever buys these lists will often try to use the same password with high value services such as online shopping and banking accounts.  

If the attacker has your username "BabyMonkey2024" and your password "Password123" for Rakuten, they can not only log into your Rakuten account, but they can try the same username/email and password with Amazon, Mitsubishi, SMBC, Citibank, and wherever else they can think of.  They will also have scripts to automate this, so they can try hundreds of sites for thousands of users, and focus on the ones where they happened to be able to log in easily.  

Obviously using different passwords for each site is best defence here, but of course remembering passwords for every site is perhaps not realistic.  There are two ways around this:

a. Use a password hashing tool.  These tools will use a shared static password and the site URL to come up with a hash that you use as your password.  The advantage here is that you only need to remember one password, the calculated password for each site will be different, and there is nothing to "store".  The disadvantages are that in real life, many sites have password restrictions that may not be compatible with the generated password, and many sites require you to change your password periodically.

b. Use a password database.  There are cloud tools such as ProtonPass, BitWarden, DashLane, etc., and primarily offline tools such as KeePassXC.  

Theoretically the online tools are secure since any reputable service would encrypt your password database with your password (which they don't know).  This means that even if they are hacked, the attackers would only get a useless encrypted database.  

In reality, if your database password is weak, then it can be cracked.  Even if it is strong, there may be some unknown weakness that could be exploited later.  For these reasons, I tend to be untrusting of public cloud based password management services for personal use.  

Offline tools such as KeePass are safer in that respect, but can be less convenient to use if you have multiple devices, and require you to manage and backup your password database.  You can keep an offline backup of your password database using USB drives, etc., or you can keep a cloud backup using services such as DropBox, OneDrive, iCloud, etc. - but be aware that using cloud services to keep backups of your password databases re-introduces some of the risk associated with cloud password management services mentioned above.  

As far as the password generation itself goes, many tools have built-in to generate hard to guess complex passwords.  These passwords can also be hard to manually enter as well, though, so you might consider using something like: www.correcthorsebatterystaple.net to generate a more human readable password.  

3. Account Takeover

This is when someone takes over your email account, via Phishing or password re-use, and then they use the email account to either send emails to your contacts to scam them, reset & verify your shopping and banking accounts, or (usually) send spam.  

You'll know this has happened if you start receiving lots of bounce messages from addresses you never sent email to, or if you suddenly get locked out of your account because the attacker changes the password.  

Also, if an attacker gets access to your email account, they can see which other services you are signed up for and know where to attack next.  For example, if you have emails from Mitsubishi bank or Amazon, they will know you have accounts there, and possibly your username or account number.  

It's best to use MFA mechanisms and use different passwords for each account in order to prevent this from happening, but that won't stop all phishing attacks.  

4. Typo URLs & Evil SEO

These go hand in hand with Phishing, but is a bit narrower in scope.  For people who type a URL directly into the browser, they might mistype the URL.  For example, Mitsubishi's online banking URL is https://direct.bk.mufg.jp, but one might mistakenly enter  one of the following:

• https://direct.bk.mufj.co.jp
• https://direct.bk.mufg.com
• https://direct.bk.mufg.net
• https://direct.bk.mufj.jp
• https://direct.hk.mufj.jp

An attacker can register these and other likely mistyped URLs, and since they will own the domain, they can set up sites that mimic the look and feel of the real web site.  

The victim enters the URL, the site is displayed, and they enter their login information.  At that point, an error might be displayed after their login information is logged, or in some  cases, they might even redirect the user to the real site so they never know the difference.  

Depending on the domain and other factors, it may be possible for the attacker to obtain a valid SSL certificate (since they do own the URL) so the Key icon in the browser will even show up.

There are anti-phishing plugins and browsers that blacklist these types of sites, but the best defense is to keep the known good URL somewhere (like a password database) where you can copy &  paste it when needed, or at least store it as a bookmark in your browser. 

Another tactic that relies on user laziness and the blurring of the lines between the search box and the URL box in many browsers is that a scammer will set up a fake banking site mimicing a real bank, perhaps using a similar URL (Either a typoURL or a URL that uses obscure Unicode characters to make it look identical to the real domain name while actualy being different), and use systems like AdWords to make sure it appears high in the ranking.  

This means that if a user doesn't type in a URL manually or use a bookmark, but simply types "Mitsubishi Direct" and then clicks on a displayed URL, they may be taken to the evil site.  Of course search Engines like Yahoo and Google will try to detect this and delete such entries, but there is no guarantee.  

The best defence is to never search for an important URL.  Where money is involved, you should know the URL for sure and enter it directly.  Again this can be through a browser bookmark or copy & pasting it from a password database.  There should be no reason you ever need to ask Yahoo or Google where your bank's official web sire is.  

Financial Paranoia 1 - Social Engineering Scams

 This series is about online banking and operational security.  As such it is relevant to jot just Japan, but online banking (including smartphone banking) in general.  In fact, there is little specific to Japan, but the bank names, etc. we use here for example will be Japanese - but everything here could just as easily apply to Korea, the UK, or the US.  

We will discuss the common problems and solutions, ranging from the simple easily implemented solutions and best practices all the way to the super paranoid.

First, let's discuss the common problems, as understanding the threat model is key:

1. Offline & Social Media Social Engineering - These are when someone attempts to convince you to "invest" or outright sent them money.  

I'll give three examples:

a. The "Ore Ore" scam.  This one is popular in Japan and many other countries.  The scammer will call random phone numbers from a burner phone and claim to be a relative in trouble.  The conversation will usually go something like this:

Victim: Hello?

Scammer: Hi, it's me!

Victim: Takeshi, is that you?

Scammer: Yes, I'm in trouble.  Listen, I don't have much time to talk, but it's an emergency, I need you to send me money.

Victim: Okay, I can send some money to your account.

Scammer: I can't access my account right now, but can you sent the money to my friend's account? I'll send you the information.

Victim: Okay, I see.

Scammer: (Sends account information)

Victim: (sends money)

In this case, the scammer usually knows nothing about the victim, but just calls lots of people randomly in the hopes that someone who isn't very vigilent will assume their child, grandchild, etc. is calling, and will send the money without thinking too much due to a sense of urgency.

The scammer will likely be using a stolen account they have access to, and withdraw the money in cash as soon as it is sent.  By the time the victim realizes what's happened, it will be too late.  Even if they report the crime, the police are left with a burner phone number, and two victims, the one who sent the money, and the one who's account was used.  

Sadly, this type of crime most often affects elderly people, who seem less likely to stop and think before blindly sending money to a loved one in need.  

As cold as it may sound, the best way to stop this type of crime is simply to verify the story before sending any money to anyone.  Don't say "Is this Takeshi?", but ask "Who is this?"  If they won't tell you, or say something like "It's me!", then it's almost for sure a scam.  

You can hang up and call them on their normal number to verify the story - even if they claim they lost their phone or whatever.  It's very unlikely that anything would be that urgent that it can't wait a few hours while you check.  

b. The account takeover / POSA Gift Card Scam

In this case, someone you know will contact you by chat (f.e. LINE), SMS, email, etc., claiming to need a favor.  They may ask you to send the cash, or more often, gift cards.  Of course they will often offer to pay you back in cash the next time they see you.  Gift cards are preferable because they can be exchanged for cash without needing a bank account - so there is less evidence.  

This usually means that someone's phone has been stolen, or their email account has been taken over.  The best solution to this is to ask them to call you so you can discuss it.  If it's somene you know, you probably know what their voice sounds like, and can quickly determine if it's someone else.  You could also ask why they need the gift card, why they can't buy it themselves, etc.

This actually happened to me, with a wealthy friend suddenly asking that I buy them Amazon gift cards at 7-11 via Line.  When I asked them to call me to discuss it, they started in with "Don't you trust me?", etc.  That friend had two phones, so I called the other one and asked them about it.  They said "Oh, I lost my phone in Thailand".  I told them they should contact Line to have the account disabled, and quickly warn their other friends not to send any money to the scammer.  

I also had a similar experience where another friend sent me a message from their Gmail account explainoing how they were traveling and in trouble, and wanted me to send them money via Western Union.  I contacted them via Skype and of course it turned out to be a scam.  they were not traveling at all and were in fact at work at the time.  

c. The new friend / investment scam - Someone you don't know will contact you via some chat app, often saying they were referred to you by someone with a common name.  They will try to talk to you, and over the course of weeks will try to befriend you, or perhaps make you believe they are a romantic partner. 

At some point, the discussion will inevitably turn to money, and they will often try to "help" you by letting you know about an amazing investment opportunity.  This will often be crypto related.  

This happened to someone I know, and they were asked to invest a small amount in some crypto site.  The amazing opportunity was that they would earn 1% per month just by having money in this account.  So they invested a small amount, for example $100, and saw after a few months that they were indeed getting 1% interest per month.  That's over 12% per year compounded, so it seems like a great deal, and they invested a lot more.  The new "Friend" discouraged them from taking their winnings, suggesting they should inveest more and more.  Eventually when he did try to withdraw the money, it never arrived, and the new friend blocked them.  Of course the site was fake, and the money was long gone.  

The sage advice "Don't talk to strangers" applies here, but more to the point, most chat programs can be set to simply not allow contact from unknown accounts.  This may mean requiring that you have their phone number in your address book, making your ID non-searchable, etc.  This is the best option - but even if you allow strangers to contact you, you should never take investment advice from them or send them money.  A stranger you've been chatting with for 6 months is still a stranger if you've never met them in person.  

Sadly this person lost about $30k to their online girlfriend.  

Summary:

All of the above are social engineering scams that work based on technology, but the solutions are mainly not technological in nature - but simply verifying identity, not trusting strangers, not allowing yourself to be rushed, and thinking deliberatly before you act.  

Also, a 12% risk free investment simply doesn't exist.  In Japan if a company needs to raise capital, they can go to the bank and get a loan for less than 5%, so there is absolutely no reason they would pay individual investors 12%.  The best stable returns you can get are form a stock market index, at around 7% - and that is risky in the short term.  If someone is willing to pay you 12%, it must be riskier than that.  You should always thinkg about the transaction from the other party's point of view to see if it makes sense.  

Net Bank Update: JRE Bank＆Sumishin SBI NEOBANK [Migrated]

Please read here:

https://www.goldengoo.se/2026/06/20/net-bank-update-jre-bank%ef%bc%86sumishin-sbi-neobank/

 The term "Net bank" has always seemed silly to me, as internet banks still have employees and presumably offices, and "normal banks" still have internet banking these days - so it's a relatively pointless line in the sand.  Money is mostly virtual anyway.  

That said, many so-called Net Banks don't have any branches that customers can visit.  Even Sony Bank closed their branch office due to Covid.  Since Mega-Banks have to pay rent for lots of huge offices, they tend to charge higher interest rates for loans, pay [even] lower interest rates for deposits, and charge more fees.

To stop from bleeding customers, some of the Mega-banks have started their own net banks.  For example, Mitsubishi launched Jibun Bank in a joint venture with au.  

Some people, especially the older generations, feel "safety" and "trust" with the famous mega-banks like Mizuho and Mitsubishi - but given that all accounts are insured with the government, there is no real safety advantage to having an account with one of these banks over a small regional bank or net bank.    

A more recent development is that some banks are offering their banking infrastructure and certifications for rent to other clients in much the same way that major mobile phone carriers offer their infrastructure for resale to others carriers.  

There were already a lot of companies participating in this, but most did not offer any special advantage, except if you bought a lot of stuff at a certain store.  For example, much as there is a Bic Camera Credit card, there is a "Takashimaya Bank", where it is just Shinsei SBI Neobank re-branded to Takashimaya bank.  Takashimaya is just a department store, so they don't actually have approval from regulators to create an actual bank, nor do they have the infrastructure, etc. - but they can outsource Sumishin SBI to offer a branded banking service and presumably all parties involved benefit.  (Note that the English word "Bank" has no legal meaning in Japan, so they can call themselves a "Bank" all they want, and it's just fashion).  

 Department stores aren't interesting to me - but you know what is?  Japan Rail.  Why?  Well everyone takes the train.  View Card is one of the best credit cards in Japan because the points you earn are JRE points, which can be used to charge Mobile Suica - rendering them effectively the same as cash.  No limited catalogs full of stuff you don't want that is super overpriced, no discounts on services you'll never use - none of that - just points you can spend as money anywhere.  

But what if you want to use a debit card instead of credit card?  Well Japan Rail East thought it was time to come up with a solution to this, and thus "JRE Bank" was born.  

It's a service offered by Rakuten bank, but it's separate enough that you can sidestep the usual "one account per person" restriction and set up an account with JRE bank even if you already have a Rakuten account.  

The main advantage over a normal Rakuten account is that you can earn JRE points by using your debit card, and depending on various conditions, such as setting your payroll to be deposited in your JRE Bank account, setting your View Card to deduct from there, etc., you can earn enormous discounts on train tickets.  

So, it's good for anyone who might want to take the train... which is basically everyone.   This has taken the Japanese internet by storm, but.. yeah okay so you get points and cheap train tickets.  This is great, but not even the best part to me.

See, I've had a longstanding problem:

1. I shop (and drink) at some places that only take cash.

2. I don't want to carry a lot of cash.  I want to set spending limits.

3. Because of the above, I need to go to the ATM often.

4. Most mega-banks offer free ATM service, but their ATMs have very limited operating hours, or are not so many in number.  (For example, SMBC Prestia ATMs operate nearly 24/7 and are always free to use, but they only have 14 ATMs in Tokyo).  Mitsubishi has more ATMs, and some of them are open late, but they charge 110 JPY after 9pm!

5. Most internet banks let you use Conbini ATMs for free (since they don't have their own ATMs), but only a few times per month.  After that, you have to pay.  

I like Rakuten, because it is the only bank I know of that lets you set a daily limit of less than 10,000 JPY on withdrawals, and it also lets you set times and locations where withdrawals can/can't be made.  

As an example, I can set the following:

a. Only up to 8000 JPY per day.

b. Only between 9am to 2am

c. Only in Tokyo or Kanagawa

This is a pretty good system to stop any kind of fraud or misuse, and also for even for threats and self control.  

But... if you are limiting yourself to less than 10,000 JPY then you will need to use the ATM more often.  This is exactly what I want - but I don't want to pay all the fees!  

If only there was a bank that let you set up such limits, but also had ubiquitous ATMs in many locations that were free to use for long hours.  

Enter JR bank.  Since it's based on Rakuten Bank's systems, JRE Bank allows the same sort of fine tuned security settings.  It also has a key difference from normal Rankuten bank accounts - unlimited use of View Altte ATMs.  Given that basically every JR station has a View Altte ATM, you can use the ATM for free most places you go shopping.  Sure, if you live near a subway station, there may not be a JR station nearby, but you will probably pass one on the way to work or shopping.  If not, you can also use Conbini ATMs for free a few times of month.  (Up to 7 times if you keep a massive amount of money with them).  

JR stations are also typically open long hours, typically closing after midnight and opening by 5am.  What's more, the ATMs are sometimes located on the outside of the station - in which case you can use them even when the station is closed.  W

In case there is no View Altte ATM and you use a Conbini ATM it will cost 220 JPY if you don't have any more free withdrawals left for the month, regardless of the time of day.  Not the cheapest or the most expensive.  

----

The other strong contender for ATM use is Sumishin SBI Neobank.  Just by setting up an account and linking it with your mobile phone, you can use the ATM for free 5 times per month.  

The first thing to know about Sumishin SBI is that being basically a net bank, they don't really have their own ATMs.  Having said that, you can use Conbini ATMs, Japan Post ATMs, and also View Altte ARMs.  Impressively, even when you don't have any free withdrawals left, they only charge you 110 JPY for using a Conbini or View Altte ATM - regardless of the time of day.  

Like Rakuten and JRE Bank, they also have a rank system where you can earn more free withdrawals based on various conditions, but the difference is that their terms are very generous.  

At the lowest rank, you only get one time for free, but all you have to do is log in with your smart phone to reach rank 2, which will give you 5 free withdrawals per month.  

Reaching rank 3 is still not too difficult, and will give you 10 free withdrawals per month for free.  I suspect this would be enough for most people.  

Rank 4 is a bit more difficult to reach for free, but you get 20 free withdrawals per month!  That means you could visit the ATM basically every weekday to withdraw your lunch money and still not pay any fees.  

Note: This was recently changed from unlimited to 20 times per month, so you know there were some people using the ATM three times per day or something.  

The easiest way to reach rank 4 without keeping a huge amount of money in your account is simply to pay for it by signing up for the  Platinum Debit Card (Mastercard).  The cost is something like 11,000 JPY (although the first year is free with some conditions).  

20 free withdrawals per month x 12 months = 240 free withdrawals.

11,000 / 240 = ~46 JPY per withdrawal.  

I am guessing that they are literally just charging what they are paying to the ATM providers.

Of course, since it's a platinum card, it comes with other dubious benefits like airport lounge access, vacation & mobile device insurance, etc.  The most important benefit (besides the increase in free ATM withdrawals) is that you earn points at a rate of 1%, and those points can be converted to cash back.  Granted, you would have to spend 110,000 on the card in a year to make the cash back actually cover the annual fee for the card.  

Still, if you want to use the ATM often, and are not near a JR station, then Sumishin SBI is a solid option.

Deposit Type Credit Cards in Japan [Migrated]

Please continue reading here. The major international credit card brands (JCB, American Express, Visa, and Mastercard) are available in numerous types in Japan:

• Traditional post paid credit cards
• Prepaid cards that must be charged before using
• Debit cards that link to an existing bank account
• Deposit based (Secured) credit cards

Traditional post paid credit cards can help you build a credit history, but... in general they require a credit history.  One way to get such a card is to have credit history from other loans, etc., or to start with a store card before moving to a card with Visa, etc.  Some companies will take a risk by offering you a card with a small limit, and then slowly increasing it over time as you show an ability and willingness to pay on time every month.  

This is so because the card companies are taking a risk by loaning you the money you use for purchases every month.  If you are a foreignor, especially one with no credit history, banks may be reluctant to take such a risk.  Likewise, even some Japanese people will be deemed a credit risk, especially those with a history of missing payments, as well as those in debt reorganization or bankruptcy, or those who already have a high level of debt compared with their level of income.  

Prepaid cards and debit cards are a solution to this issue, but they don't help you to build credit since there is no loan taking place.  

This is where deposit based cards come in.  

With a deposit based card, you must sent a deposit to the card company once your application has been approved.  This deposit then becomes your credit limit, which the company can then use to pay off your bill in the worst case.  Because of this, the credit card company is taking on very little risk and will approve applications from most people.  The major exceptions would be if you have been flagged for malicious activity, money laundering, or outright fraud.  

However, the deposit will normally not be used unless you don't pay your monthly bill.  Typically the monthly bill will be automatically deducted from your bank account, so as long as there are funds in your account, the money you spend each month will be deducted in the following month or so, and your credit limit will be replentished.  Only in the case that a direct debit fails (for example if you close your bank account or there are insufficient funds) would the credit card company actually use your deposit.  

This is in contrast to prepaid cards, where you deposit money and then spend that money directly.  With a deposit style card, you pay the deposit, and then when you use the card that is a separate loan balance as with a normal credit card.  After the monthly billing period is over, the company will calculate your balance due and send an invoice or initiate direct debit for the that amount - without touching your deposit.  

Once the payment has been received, your credit limit will be restores, and you can make more purchases up to the limit again.  So, although you have given them a deposit, the spending does constitute a loan, and so using this style of card does build a credit history.  

Some things to note:

1. Yearly card member fees are typically higher than the fees for a "normal" credit card

2. The yearly fees typically increase with higher deposit amounts/credit limits

3. Some cards do allow you to apply for an "ETC Card", which can be used to pay tolls automatically on the highway.

4. Some cards offer special services such as travel insurance, etc., in the same way that many normal credit cards do.  

5. If you ever decide to cancel your account, then you will receive your deposit back, minus any unpaid balance due.  

Investing in Gold in Japan [Migrated]

Please continue reading here.

 To most people in most countries, investing in gold (or other metals) is something they hear about, but not something they actually do.  

First, a brief primer on the benefits and drawbacks of investing in gold:

We'll start with the advantages:

a. Unlike Gold has actual intrinsic (real) value.  It's used for jewelry, electronics, dental work, industrial processes, investment (of course), and more.  Gold is something that people will always want for practical uses, and therefore it will always be possible to sell your gold.

b. Gold is a hedge against inflation.  If the Japanese Yen, US Dollar, or any other currency goes down in value, the price of gold will not drop, but in fact go up in relation to that currency.  For example, if the Japanese Yen goes down 50% tomorrow, then gold will simply cost 50% more - which is to say that any gold you are holding can be sold for 50% more.  Inflation in Japan has been close to zero percent for a long time, but that is starting to change recently.  

c. Gold is a hedge against currency exchange risk.  This is a variation on a theme, but if a currency drops reletive to other currencies, then you would be better off holding gold instead of that currency.  This isn't just academic, as the US Dollar rose significantly against Japanese Yen in the past year.  

d. There is a limited supply of gold.  Despite the best efforts of alchemists all over the world over the last several hundred years, gold can't be created from anything else in anything anywhere near resembling a cost effective method.  That means that we have what we have, and the earth has only a limited supply.  Since gold is useful and there is always a demand, the limited supply means that there is a floor on the price of gold.  This is extremly unlikely to change, barring the advent of efficient space mining.  

There are certain disadvantages, though, with some being country specific:

a. Gold doesn't earn interest, and it doesn't pay dividends.   When you buy a loan like a bond, you are funding a company or government, and they will pay you for the privlidge of borrowing your money.  Ideally the amount you are paid should outweigh any inflation.  Bank accounts, likewise, are in fact just a loan to the bank, so banks will pay you interest as well.  When you invest in stock, you are buying part of a business.  If the business does well, then the value of the stock will go up according to the company's growth potential or actual growth.  Companies like Sony, Toshiba, Hitachi, Google, Fujitsu, Apple, Amazon, and Rakuten earn profit and can pay dividends on a regular basis - whereas gold is just a lump of metal that doesn't "do" anything.  It mainly goes up in value only if new uses are found, or the market is fearful.  A box of gold bars sitting in your house also doesn't earn rent like a property can.  

b. At least in Japan, purchasing gold is not considered to be exchanging money like, say, FX trading.  Gold is considered a physical good, and not a monetary instrument.  That means that you must pay sales tax when purchasing gold.  The sales tax in Japan is currently 10%, so in order to make money by investing in gold, the value would have to go up more than 10% in order for the investor to recover what they paid in sales tax, plus all of the fees involved in buying and selling the gold.  

c. Spread and Transaction Fees.  Much like with currency exchange, gold dealers will charge a different fee to purchase gold than they sell it at.  This difference is called the "spread", and exists to allow the company to make a profit regardless of parket conditions.  On top of that, buying and selling gold is also not free.  Besides the spread between buy and sell rates that exists, most companies that deal in gold charge transaction fees for buying and selling.  This is probably to cover fraud, security, and testing.  In general, the smaller quantity of gold you are dealing with, the larger the fees become relative to the transaction amount - though it varies by company.  

d. Tax treatment.  Even if an investor buys gold, and the price goes up enough to make selling it profitable, a tax will be exacted on that profit  by the Government of Japan.  The tax rate is lower if you have held the gold for at least five years.  This rule is designed to discourage speculation, but it has the side effect that anyone who might need the money soon should avoid buying gold.  

e. Security.  If you have invested a large amount in physical gold, then you need somewhere to keep it.  Just like cash, you can keep it in "the bank", but then you may need to pay management fees to the gold dealer who is holding it.  

For the reasons listed above, many Japanese people would prefer to invest in stocks, bonds, property, or just keep cash.  

In some countries where the currency is less stable, there are fewer other opportunities for investing, or the tax regime is less strict, gold transactions are much more popular.  For example, in China, there are mom & pop shops that deal in "gold rice", which is very small rice sized pieces of gold of well less than a gram that anyone can buy or sell for cash without any ID.  

This makes sense, since the Chinese currency is not the most stable, and the same goes for the local stock market.  The government restricts transfers of money to other countries, and the huge property bubble that is collapsing as I write this isn't going to encourage people to invest there.  

It's also easy to buy the small pieces of gold little by little over time and build up a nice little nest egg.  

The situation is similar in many devloping nations, where people might fear hyperinflation or not trust the government or banks.  

In Japan, it's not super common for people to invest in gold.  There are multiple reasons for this, but probably the main ones are as follows:

0. Lack of need.  Japan's currency is relatively stable, people mostly trust the government, and there has been very little inflation over the past two decades.  This means that it's very unlikely for people to make their 10% back on the basis of inflation alone.  Instead, people who buy gold are more likely to be speculators rather than investors, or the very wealthy.    

1. It's difficult to know where to buy gold.  You can but it multiple places, even online shopping sites like Amazon or Rakuten, but the prices are always far above the market rate, and it's difficult to know if you might be getting scammed.  

2. Budget.  The average person might have a few hundred USD to invest at any given moment, but the more famous dealers charge high fees for small transactions, or only deal in large amounts to begin with.  

So the question becomes:  If you aren't super wealthy, and you are interested in investing in gold in Japan, how can you do it in a cost effective way?

Before getting to the most cost effective way, let's look at some of the less efficient alternatives:

1. Jewely and/or coins - You can purchase jewelry and/or coins at various small brokers and pawn shops in Japan, as well as online.  Typically the price you will pay is far above the price per gram for gold you will find listed on Google or Yahoo.  This is because the price will be affected by the "quality" of the piece.  The beauty, rarity, etc.  For example, a famous but rare limited edition coin may sell for much greater than the cost of the actual gold used to make it - in the same way that stamps can go for huge sums of money even though they are just pieces of paper.  Another thing to consider is that pure gold is very soft, and so therefore many companies will mix it with other harder metals in order to produce a metal with more ideal characteristics for making jewelry - This is where 18k gold comes from.  The result of all of this is that while investing in jewelry and coins might be a fun past-time for some people, it is not really the same thing as investing in gold itself.  Further, there is some small amount of worry about whether the items are indeed genuine.  

2. Purchasing gold ingots, etc. at small shops or online.  You can find gold ingots at some small pawn shops and gold dealers, as well as online, but buying something like 1 gram of gold, you are likely to have to pay twice the official market price.  The same thing goes for novelty gold gift cards, etc.  For anything purchased from a random seller online, there is a fair chance that you might be getting scammed.  

3. Investing in a gold related company - This is something many people have had confusion about.  People will invest in (for example) a gold mining company and then be surprised when the investment doesn't turn out how they hoped.  Investing in a gold mining company or a gold dealer means you are investing in a company, not in the gold itself.  Most of these companies will do well even when the price of gold is lower, but they will not track the performance of gold, and it a company goes bankrupt because of scandal, regulatory compliance issues, or something else, you will lose your investment.  

4. "Virtual" gold.  This is where you invest in gold online much like you can invest in foreign currencies with FX.  There is no specific gold assigned to you, and you can't actually take delivery of the physical metal in most cases.  All you can do is sell it.  This is probably fine in most cases, but just beware that if the company goes bankrupt, then they may use the gold (if they have it in their posession) to pay off debts to credtors, suppliers, tax liabilities, employees, etc.  If you really want to keep gold in case of an economic crash, then you might want to have the ability to covert your holdings into the actual metal you can keep in your house or a safety deposit box.  

5.  Other financial instruments: ETFs, Futures, or Options.   Basically speaking, Futures and Options can be used to hedge financial risk, or for speculation, but are not really suitable for long term investment.  ETFs vary widely based on how they are constructed, so research is warranted, but a gold related ETF may just be a basket of stocks for gold related companies.   

6. In person through a major gold manufacturers.  This is where you take cash and go to one of the three large gold manufacturers in Japan, and walk out with a gold Ingot.  This is the most efficient way to buy and sell gold, assuming you are needing to buy or sell large quantities.  The three different companies all have different spreads, and charge different fees.  Amusingly enough, Costco has a deal with one of the manufacturers, where you can actually walk  into Costco in Kawasaki and walk out with gold in your hand.  

7. Purchasing gold overseas.  You can certainly do this, but you must declare the gold when bringing it into Japan and pay import taxes.  If you do somehow sneak it in, it won't help you, because without proof of sales tax, you will need to pay sales tax when selling your gold to any reputable dealer.  Gives the word "Sales tax" a new meaning.  

And finally...

8. A gold investment plan.  These are designed to let you use Dollar Cost Averaging to purchase gold in relatively small amounts over time in an automatic fashion, just like a 401k allows you to invest a small amount with every paycheck.  

Before we get into the details, let's talk about the major gold manufacturers in Japan:

1. Mitsubishi Materials - This is part of the Mitsubishi conglomerate, which has related companies ranging from banks to automotive companies.  You can think of this as a manufacturing conglomerate and bank that decided to branch out into ingots.  

2. Tanaka Kikinzoku - Tanaka is basically a jewelry company that decided to branch out into the ingot business.  They do offer an investment plan, and deal in coins as well.   

3. Nihon Material - Nihon material is much like Mitsubishi Material in that they are in industrial manufacturer that produces gold plates, film, pellets, etc., for industrial customers, and also happens to offer ingots and an investment plan.  

Basically speaking, Mitsubishi is a famous name, and Tanaka is well known, so they both relatively low spreads, but charge very high fees for low quantities.  In fact, the last time I checked, Tanaka would charge a huge fee just to hold your gold.  This means they are only cost effective for those who have a lot to invest (at once, or monthly).  Nihon Material has a slightly higher spread, but it much more affordable in terms of fees.  

This reflects the current situation, and may change over time, so please do your research before opening an account.  

I'll only go over the Nihon Material plan in detail, since that will be the best option for most people.  

Application Process:  You need to open an account before you can go anything.  The gold industry is slightly behind the times, so you will need to fill out a form online, but they will then mail you an application form to fill in, and send back with copies of your ID and bank account information, along with how much you would like to invest monthly, and into which metals.  You can invest as little as 3,000 JPY (Around $30) per month, making this a plan truly targeted at all people.  

Once they have received your information and set up your account, they will send you another envelope with your login account and password information.  You can check your current invested and uninvested balance, and change your monthly contribution amounts, as well as request to buy, sell, or withdraw gold (more on that later).  

Let's say that you have some extra money burning a hole in your pocket - you can log in and purchase additional gold beyond your normal monthly contribution.  

Likewise, if gold is super high at the moment and you feel like you want to sell some of it, you can - just beware, buying and selling manually somewhat defeats the purpose of automatic contributions and Dollar (or Yen) Cost Averaging (DCA).  

The way the account works in practice is that every month on the same day, Nihon Material will withdraw the elected amount of money via direct debit from your bank account, and that money will go into your investment account and sit there as uninvested cash until the following month.  

When the next month rolls around, they will invest a little of the money each day, so that by the end of that month, they have invested all of it.  Since they only buy on business days, and the number of business days varies per month, and so does the purchase amount per day.  

For example, if you were investing 10,000 JPY (~$100 USD), then the daily investment this month would be 454 JPY per day.  If this month had more business days, then the amount invested per day would be less.  Likewise in a month with a lot of public holidays, the amount invested per business day will be more.   The important thing to remember is that the amount you invest per month is fixed, and they automatically deduct the cash and do the work of splitting it up into multiple daily transactions.  

The amount of gold you can actually buy for that amount will also vary by day.  This may cound confusing, so let's look at an example:

At today's rate, that 454 JPY would buy 0.04954 grams of gold.  That is close to 0.05 grams of gold, which means after 10 business days you would have 0.5 grams.  In a 20 business day month, you would get 1 gram.  This month has 22 business days, so it would work out to about 1.1 grams.  A gram is currently roughly a bit over 9,000 JPY so it roughly works out to something a bit more than 9900 JPY worth of gold, which sounds correct given our 10,000 JPY investment contribution example above.  

It's nice that they spli the purchase by day to give you the best average price, since the price of gold can sometimes change a lot in the course of a month.  It's even nicer that they do this without taking transaction fees every time since there are so many transactions!  

Everything that I have talked about up until now, you can also do with many online investment accounts, such as for example Crowd Bank.  Crowd bank will also let you set up an investment account with direct debit, and they will also split the amount up by day and automatically invest every day so you get the best average price.  Likewise, you can also do spot purchases and sales in addition to regular contributions.  

The major difference is this:

With gold manufacturers (including Nihon Material), you can actually withdraw the gold!  This means you can have the advantages of investing little by little with low fees, and also physically owning gold!  

Basically, the way this works is that you just apply to receive a gold bar online, and they will send it to you.

You can request 5g, 10g, 100g, with various options all the way up to 1kg.  

The 100g and up bars have no "bar fee", whereas the smaller bars do have them.  Given that the fees on something like 5g would be very significant in relation to the value, I would say that you should wait as long as you can before requesting a bar, with 100g being the best obvious choice.  If you are only able to invest a small amount, and a 100g bar would take forever, then perhaps 50g is not a bad option.

Warning: You probably want to avoid the larger bars like 1kg even if you are super wealthy.   Why?  Well, for tax reasons.  

As mentioned above, any gold you hold for more than 5 years can be sold with an advantagous tax disposition.  Besides that, profits below a certain amount can basically be ignored.  Each gold bar comes with a sales tax receipt and a serial number.  You can use these to prove the date of purchase, and that you have paid sales tax (otherwise you would have to pay it again!).  If you have a bunch of 100g bars, you could sell off a few every year to pay for your living expenses, starting with the older ones.

If you have a 1kg bar, then you have to sell the whole thing!  The bar may be less than 5 years old, and also it may have generates a huge profit or loss.  If it's generates a loss, then you probably don't want to sell it, but you might need to if you really need the cash.  On the other hand, if it's generated a huge profit, then you will immediately blow past the tax deductable amount of profit.  

You can get Nihon Material (or one of the other companies) to convert a 1kg bar into 100g bars, for example, but all of the companies charge a huge fee for this because they can.  Why can't you just sell your 1kg bar and buy 10 bars at 100g each?  Well, because then you are selling, and buying, so you have to pay the taxes mentioned above, plus sales tax again.  Ouch!  So as long as the companies keep their re-bar fees lower than that, then people will pay.  

So... avoid the smallest bars for fee efficiency reasons, and avoid the largest bars for tax efficiency reasons.  

I have left Tanaka and Mitsubishi out of the discussion because they have higher fees in general for smaller bars, so the extent that it seems like they are actively trying to discourage anyone who is not wealthy from investing.  Nihon Material offers you the chance to get your hands on real gold, while having a reasonable pricing structure.  

With the JPY falling against the dollar, inflation on the rise in Japan, gold rising to an all time high, and the instability in the financial markets as well as political instability recently, investing in gold might make sense to a lot of people.

Investing a huge amount of money at once while the prices is at historical highs hardly makes any sense, but neither does waiting - so an investment account with cost averaging is the perfect solution.  Whether you have $30 per month or $1,000 per month to invest, Nihon Material has you covered.  If you have more than that, then you might get a better deal with one of the other companies, since the spread potentially becomes a more significant factor vs. the fixed fees.  

Quick Guide to Prepaid Cards in Japan [Migrated]

Please read here:

https://www.goldengoo.se/2026/06/20/quick-guide-to-prepaid-cards-in-japan/

 There are multiple types of cards commonly avaiable in Japan:

• Cash Cards (ATM Cards) - These can be used at ATMs to deposit, withdraw, and transfer cash, and sometimes with the J-Debit network to pay for things at a limited number of stores.  These cards serve the same purpose as passbooks that are used for some accounts, and you can typically have both on the same account.  
• "Normal" Credit Cards - These are cards with the JCB, Visa, Mastercard, or Amex brand that can be used to pay for goods and services.  Most of these cards support the contact IC (Chip & Pin) standard, and may also have a magnetic stripe.  In addition, most have anumber printed on them that can be used for online purchases.  "Numberless" (NL) cards without a number or mag stripe are becoming more common in recent times for purposes of fraud prevention.  Some allow creation of "virtual numbers" online.   Also, some cards support international contactless payment standards like "Visa Touch", and some support Japanese contactless payment standards like iD or QuickPay.  The major brands can also be used to charge prepaid contactless payment methods, such as Suica and Edy.  Typically, purchases made on a credit card are due in full the following billing cycle by default, though it is a common feature to be able to spread a payment out into N payments, where N may be anywhere from 2 to 24 payments.  Revolving payment plans are also supported by some cards.  Typically payments made with 1 or 2 payments are free of charge, whereas payments made over more than 2 months, including revolving payments charge interest or a service fee.  Some credit cards will alllow you to generate virtual numbers for online shopping as well.  We will cover credit cards in more detail in a future installment.  
• Debit Cards (often called Check Cards overseas, called "Shopping Cards" by many banks in Japan) - Besides the J-Debit feature sometimes supported by cash cards, Visa and JCB debit cards exist, which link directly to a bank account.  Sometimes these are issued as a separate card (as is the case for SMBC, Mitsubishi, and many of the larger banks), and sometimes you will be issued a combination cash card/debit card (as is the case with Sony Bank, Rakuten Bank, Prestia, Japan Post Bank, and others).  Some banks will not issue a physical debit card, but will issue virtual debit cards.  au Jibun bank follows this pattern, issuing a cash card, but allowing you to generate a credit card number in the app for online payments.  Like credit cards, debit cards may or may not support international and/or domestic contactless payments, and some banks allow the generation of virtual numbers.    
• Contactless IC cards (electronic money) - These are stored value cards that hold the value internally, not in an account.  They can purchased and used anonymously, and charged by cash or sometimes credit card.   Mobile app versions exist which will work on Japan market smart phones, and work the same way as the physical card in that they need to be charged before use.  These include Suica, Pasmo, Edy, Waon, etc.  Suica and Pasmo can be used for the bus and train, in addition to convenience stores, supermarkets, cafes, etc.  Almost all of these cards used in Japan are constructed using Sony's Felica technology, and are not compatible with NFC standards used in other countries.  
• Prepaid Cards (Prepaid Credit Cards) - These are essentially like debit cards, except they are deducting from a balance specific to the card, not directly from a linked bank account.  Some cards, however, can be set to automatically charge from a linked bank account if the balance is not enough.  Cash can not negerally be removed from these cards once charged.  Like credit cards, they will usually have a magnetic stripe, and may have contact (EMV) or contactless IC (Felica or NFC) chips.  All of the cards I am aware of have a card number for online shopping as well.   

Prepaid cards have the advantage of being generally easy to apply for and receive, as there is usually no credit check necessary.  They can be used for online payments, or at shops - but they can't directly be used to ride public transportation.  (They can generally be used to charge mobile Suica, etc., so they can be used indirectly for transportation).  

Prepaid cards also make budgeting easy, as you can put money into a prepaid card that you plan to spend for groceries, etc., to ensure you don't go over your limit, without worrying about using up the balance in your bank account that might be needed for direct debits, or receiving a large credit card bill in the future.  

Since prepaid cards vary in features, we will cover a few of the more common ones here:

SMBC Puripe (Prepaid)

This is Sumitomo Mitsubishi Bank's standard prepaid card.  (There are also ANA and Family versions)

Application: You don't need a bank account with them to apply, in fact basically anyone can apply online.  Technically, you need to have a mobile phone number / email address, and be at least 6 years old.  

Name: The card is issued with your actual name printed in Romaji on the front.

Brand: This card is Visa branded.

Contact IC: This is the only card I know of with a contact (Chip & Pin) IC.  That makes this card better if you plan to use it in person for large purchases, especially overseas.

International Contactless IC: Visa touch is supported on the card itself.  This will work in Japan but is only supported in a limited number of places and is usually inconvenient to use.  Better is the fact that this should work overseas as well.  Visa Touch is also supported on Apple Pay.  

Domestic Contactless ID: The physical card itself has no domestic contactless payment support, but if you register the card with Apple Pay or Google Pay, it supports iD.  Since a large number of shops support iD, this is quite convenient.  

Transportation IC: This card can be used to charge Mobile Suica.

Charge methods:

• Charge at 7-11 ATMs using cash.  No transaction fee.
• Charge online from the SMBC Prepaid site using an SMBC Credit Card.  No fee.
• Charge online from the SMBC Prepaid site using a non-SMBC Credit Card.  210 JPY Transaction fee.
• Charge online from SMBC Prepaid site using a bank account.  Works with most banks if you have net banking.  210 JPY Transaction Fee
• Charge from "V Point", if you have them. 
• Note: Credit card charges can be scheduled to charge automatically on a particular day of the month, or when the balance falls below a certain point.  

Balance check: The card has a QR code on the reverse, which can be used to check your balance without logging in.  This is super convenient, since it only takes a few seconds to check your balance.  You can scan the code once and save a bookmark on your phone, so that you can easily check the balance in the future without even scanning the code.  If you want to do anything else, such as charging the card or changing any settings, you will of course need to log in.  

Notifications: A mail will be sent when the card is used.  Optionally, you can set a monthly spending limit, over which another notification mail will be sent.

Design: This card is silver and rather plain looking, and in fact looks exactly like the normal SMBC credit cards, with the exception of "prepaid" printed in small grey lettering on the front.  The number is printed on the back of the card.  

Points & Cashback: 0.25% cash back, added to the balance on the 10th of each month based on the usage of the previous month.  

Maximum Balance: 300,000 JPY (~$3,000 USD)

Fees:

• Application / Initial Use: None
• Yearly Fee: None
• Charge Fee: Varies (Detailed above)
• Foreign Transactions: 4.07%

URL: https://www.smbc-card.com/prepaid/visaprepaid/index.jsp

Is Japan a Cash Society? [Migrated]

Please read here:

https://www.goldengoo.se/2026/06/20/is-japan-a-cash-society/

One of the myths you will often hear is that Japan is a "Cash Society" - but is it true?  And if so, what does that even mean?  It's one of those things you hear all the time, but rarely see any hard numbers presented.  

I take it to mean that Japan is a country where most people use paper money and/or coins to pay for most things most of the time.  A more extreme interpretation might be that you can only use cash to pay for many of your day to day expenses.  If so, I don't think it's true at all.  

There are numerous types of payment you will see in every day life:

• Cash (paper money and coins)
• Direct Debits (From bank accounts) - Mainly used for utility bill payments
• Direct Deposit - Mainly for payroll and refunds
• Transfers between bank accounts - Often used to send money to friends, pay rent, etc.
• Contactless IC payment - Including Transportation cards such as Suica, ICOCA and Pasmo.  These can be prepaid (such as the transportation cards mentioned above), as well as cards like WAON, EDY and Nanaco.  Post-paid/realtime standards all exist, including iD and QuickPay.  These can typically be in the form of physical cards or emulated cards on smart phones.  For example, you can get a physical Suica card, or use Mobile Suica on your phone.  These are typically used for small purchases and transportation, and use Sony's Felica standard almost exclusively.  
• Credit Cards / Debit Cards - These are Visa, Mastercard, Amex, and JCB.  These use magnetic stripe, IC Chips (with contacts), and occasionally contactless (NFC) ICs, as in the example of Visa Touch.  Contactless payments via NFC is not so popular in Japan, as the above mentioned standards like iD and QuickPay are faster and already entrenched.  The advantage of these cards is that they can typically be used at overseas merchants.  
• J-Debit - Allows you to use a cash card from a bank to pay at the POS.  
• QR Code / Bar code / Mobile App payments - These hhave only become popular recently, and include things like Paypay, Yucho Pay, Rakuten Pay, au Pay, etc.  

You may have noticed that Checks and Money Orders are not on this list.  Technically the both exist, but they are not common for consumer use.  

First let me say that while the law technically stipulates that companies must pay in cash for employees who request this, most companies in practice require a bank account to set up direct deposit.  This means that for most employees, at least at large companies, they don't have paper money coming in, and need to go to a bank branch or ATM in order to withdraw cash if needed.  

Now let's consider common places where you might spend money, and what payment forms are accepted at each:

• Convenience Stores - Basically all types, excluding J-Debit.  Using a credit card is probably a slower method at many stores.  Many clients use cash, but Suica and iD are also very popular.  QR Code payment has become more popular in the past few years.  
• Resteraunts - Most proper resteraunts will accept credit cards, or cash.  Some will accept Suica and other IC cards, or QR-Codes.  
• Online shopping - Most all online shopping sites will accept credit cards, but often will accept bank transfers/direct debit, and some (such as Amazon) accept mobile Suica.  
• Supermarkets - (e.g. Summit, Queens Isetan, Kaldi, MyBasket, etc) : Almost all will accept cash, credit cards, Suica, iD, etc.  Many will accept QR code payments.  
• General Stores - (i.e. Donkihote, tokyo Hands) : Most will accept most of the payment types listed above.
• Drug Stores (e.g. Matumoto Kyoshi, Koko kara Fine, Tomod's) - Most will accept most of the payment methods listed above, including cash, credit, Suica, etc., and barcode payment methods.   
• Family Resteraunts (i.e. Jonathan's, Saizeria, etc.) - Most allow most of the payment methods listed above.    
• Home Centers (i.e. Shimachu Homes) - Cash, Credit, and depeding on the chain, other methods such as Suica, iD, QR code payments, etc.  
• Delivery (i.e. Dominos, Demaikan, Uber Eats, etc.) - Credit Cards, Cash, dPay.  
• Rent - Typically bank transfers, some larger companies may be able to set up direct debit.  Some smaller landlords might also accept cash.  
• Tax Bills, Utiltity bills - These can typically be set up to be deducted from your bank account or charged to a credit card automatically each month.  If you have not set these up, you will receive an invoice in the mail with a bar code.  These can be paid at convenience stores in cash, with Nanaco at 7-11, and with various other methods, including apps from the banks.  
• Electronics Stores (i.e. Bic Camera, Yodobashi Camera, Yamada Denki, etc). - Typically accept any method, including J-Debit.  BIC even accepted BitCoin for a while. 
• Furniture stores (i.e.  Nittori, Ikea) - Most methods.  Cash and Card for sure.  
• Dive Bars, very small cafes and resteraunts - Cash, sometimes more options.
• Small corner vegetable Sellers - Cash, maybe QR Code payments.
• Vending machines - Cash (coins or bills), Suica.  
• Taxis - Most in the city will accept Credit Cards, Cash, Suica, iD, and sometimes other methods.  Many of the larger companies also may accept barcode payments and/or have their own app.  Some are operated by individuals, and often these will only accept cash.  

I think by now you get the point.  

For eating a quick meal at a family resteraunt, or a quick trip to the supermarket or convenience store, cash is accepted, but most people pay by e-money (Suica, iD, or similar), or by Bar Code (PayPay, au Pay, or similar).  These are faster and more convenient than cash or credit cards, and the small amounts are handled efficiently.  

For charging at a fancier resteraunt, electronics store, furniture store, or general goods strore, e-Money and Bar Code payments can still be used, but for big ticket items, credit cards / Debit cards tends to dominate.  For example, Suica (and other transportation cards) can only store up to 20,000 JPY at once, so you couldn't use it to pay for a 500,000 JPY TV or bed.  Nanaco is likewise limited to 70,000 JPY.  Most bar code payment methods also have a limitation, whereas credit cards and cash have no practical limits.  

Small Shops

Some very small sellers like the mom & pop vegetable store on the corner don't accept anything except cash, or may accept only a bar code method like PayPay.  This is because they don't want to pay any transaction fees, and don't want to deal with a bank or get expensive cash registers or payment terminals.  Even Suica requires a payment terminal, whereas systems like PayPay only require a phone or a bar code sticker.  The sign up process is easier, and the introductory fees are lower. 

QR Code / Bar Code Payments & Consumers

What said, why has there been a boom in QR code style payments other than for small merchants?  On the consumer side, QR code payments are generally less convenient than using something like Suica - but in order to try to gain market share, the QR code/bar code companies have been running campaigns for the last year or so, offering 2% cash back and the like.  I suspect that once the promotional money for these campaigns runs out, the popularity will dwindle somewhat.  

The Suica Advantage

There are a few reasons why Suica (and other transportation cards) has enjoyed such longstanding popularity:

• Speed - Suica cards don't need to check in with the bank, the balance is stored on the card itself.  A suica card is designed to be used at a busy turnstile, and is specced to allow 10 people to enter per second.  That means a transaction, from start to finishes takes less than 0.10 seconds.  Some readers may think "so what if it takes a couple seconds..." - but when there is a line of people behind you, you want to pay and get out.  When there is a line of people in front of you, you want them to pay and get out, not be fumbling in their wallet, counting coins, unlocking their phone and launching apps, etc.  
• Flexibility - Suica comes in both mobile and card form, and you don't need to unlock your phone or open any app to pay.  Neither you nor the store  need an internet connection, either.  Suica can be charged from cash, or by other methods, such as credit card.  
• Privacy - You don't have to register a Suica card to your name if you want to be anonymous.  You aren't forced to give your name, address, ID, phone number, bank account, or any other information.  There is no contract to read and agree to either.  Anyone can buy a Suica card for $20, or create an anonymous Suica card in Google Pay as well.  As a result there are no restrictions on residency, age, citizenship, or anything else.  Truely anyone can get and charge a card any time they like.  You can of course register accounts for safety and convenience if you like.  
• Ubiquity - Pretty much every person in Japan has a Suica card, or compatible transportation card.  If you have it anyway, then it's convenient that you can use it to pay for small items.  
• Eki (Station) - Train stations are some of the most sought after retail locations for merchants, and some of the most convenient locations for consumers to do their shopping.  There are many shopping malls in these stations, like Atre, Ekichika, and many more.  A condition of renting space is that the store much accept Suica (or Pasmo, etc).  This means even stores that ordinarily don't accept Suica (like Starbucks) are strong-armed into accepting it at many of their locations.  As a result, when shopping in and around train stations, you can be rest assured that whatever else the shops accept, they will accept Suica for sure.
• Usefulness - If you have some remaining balance on some payment methods and you aren't going to use them for a while, the money is effectively useless.  For example, if you have 500 JPY left on your PayPay account, you may or may not be able ot use it.  Paypay is accepted many places, so you will probably use it, but if you have PayPay, dPay, au Pay, Yucho Pay, Rakuten Pay, etc., and have $5 on each... some may sit unused for a while.  You may decide to transfer the money back to your bank account in those cases - but with Suica, it's guaranteed that you can use it to ride the train, subway, or bus, which most everyone does from time to time.  
• No Mobile Requirement - Suica is supported on mobile devices, but as mentioned above physical cards are supported.  The phones simply emulate a physical card, which means they don't even need to have battery or internet to use an existing balance or charge from cash.  

At any rate, I have tried most of the payment methods out there, but I spend almost all of my money via the following:

1. My Bills are charged to my JCB credit card or direct debit from my bank account.  

2. I pay paper invoices by Nanaco (but I charge this with cash once per month)

3. I have an iD/Visa debit card, so I often use iD to pay at places that accept it

4. I use Suica around the station and places that don't accept iD (f.e. Kakuyasu)

5. I use the visa debit card's card number, or my JCB credit card's card number for shopping on Amazon and other online purchases (Using Suica to pay online is a minor hassle)

6. I use cash sometimes at small bars...

Actually, as a general rule, if a place doesn't accept Suica or iD, then I figure they must not want my money, and I don't generally shop there.  

I really don't use EDY or QuickPay, because I have found that most places will accept Suica or ID.  I never use Visa Touch because every place that accepts it accepts iD or Suica.  I don't use the visa (chip) feature of my card if the shop accepts iD, which most do.  JCB isn't supported by all overseas web sites, so I use Visa in those cases.  

At any rate, I only very rarely use actual cash, and I don't use PayPay or similar.  (I have set up some of these apps, such as au Pay and Yucho Pay, but don't really have an incentive to use them).  

So the idea that you need to use cash for most day to day expenses is simply false.  You can most likely pay for your coffee, groceries, cleaning supplies, online shopping and most everything else you want using some combination of Suica/iD, Credit/Debit, and bar code/QR Code apps.  

If you spend a lot of time in dive bars and buy all your groceries from mom & pop corner shops, you aren't likely to need to carry much cash.  That said, given that there are some places that only accept cash, I would always keep at least 2,000 JPY on me  - just in case.  

This is perhaps different than what I have seen in some other countries, where *everyone* accepted cashless payments.  For example, it is well known that these days in China, WeChat pay or Ali Pay is seemingly accepted even at the smallest food stalls and similar.  While everyone acts like this is some modern revelation, debit and credit cards are seemingly accepted even for the smallest payments in the US and some other western countries, while many southeast asian countries allow you to pay money through the mobile operator via SMS.  Meanwhile, Japan has had Suica and Mobile Suica since well before WeChat was a gleam in the creator's eye.