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    Japan Post Holdings Co., Ltd.: Acquisition of stake in Aflac Incorporated

Leading Japanese law firm Nishimura & Asahi has advised Japan Post Holdings Co., Ltd. (“Japan Post Holdings”) [TSE: 6178] on its acquisition of approximately 7% of the outstanding common shares of Aflac Incorporated (“Aflac”) [NYSE: AFL].

This strategic investment is subject to certain regulatory approvals in Japan and the US, which are anticipated in the second half of 2019.  

Japan Post Holdings and its subsidiaries provide universal postal services and various financial products in post offices throughout Japan.

Aflac is a Fortune 500 company which provides insurance products to more than 50 million people worldwide. In Japan, Aflac is the leading provider of medical and cancer insurance, and insures one in four households. 

The Nishimura & Asahi team advising Japan Post Holdings was led by partners Tatsuya Tanigawa, Madoka Shimada, Kohei Ishida and Tatsuya Nakayama.

People

谷川 達也

Tatsuya Tanigawa is a partner at Nishimura & Asahi, and has represented Japanese and non-Japanese buyers and sellers in numerous cross-border transactions in various industries, including stock and asset acquisitions, private equity and venture capital investments, joint ventures, and strategic alliances. He has handled both inbound and outbound transactions, including many public company transactions. He is committed to finding solutions for his clients in any transaction.

島田 まどか

Madoka advises clients on various matters of competition law, including domestic and international cartels, bid-rigging, M&A transactions, investigations by the JFTC, leniency applications and general antitrust law compliance. She is especially active in cross-border transactions. She has represented clients in connection with investigations into various global cartels, involving air cargo, marine hoses, TFT-LCDs, airlines, and bearings, and also in various merger-control cases, including a vertical integration between semiconductor equipment manufacturers, and major global merger transactions in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. She has particular strength and experience handling IT-industry mega deals. Madoka is also active in advising in the international trade area, in particular, government procurement and export control. In addition, she advises on laws preventing unfair competition, including trade secret cases. She served as lead counsel to Nippon Steel Corporation in multinational trade secret litigation against POSCO (a South Korean steel company), a landmark case in this area, and successfully negotiated a favorable settlement for her client. She was a member of the Subcommittee on Unfair Trade Policies and Measures of the Industrial Structure Council at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry from 2013 to 2023.

石田 康平

He has been involved in the establishment of a variety of funds, including private equity funds, venture funds, CVC, infrastructure funds, renewable energy funds, and real estate funds. Structuring advice in connection with Financial Instruments and Exchange Act and other securities regulations is his area of specialty. He also actively supports investment activities of funds, such as M&A, LBO finance, and venture investments. Further, he focuses on the development, acquisition, and/or project finance of renewable energy projects supporting developers, including, but not limited to, renewable energy funds. He also has experience in IPP projects abroad as a member of a leading Japanese trading company. He is a member of the Africa practice team and Middle-East practice team, and has a good connection with law firms in such areas. He actively supports Japanese companies in the expansion of their businesses in Africa and the Middle-East.

中山 達也

Tatsuya Nakayama is a partner in our M&A and corporate practice and was previously seconded to a top-tier U.S. international law firm. He has represented Japanese and non-Japanese buyers and sellers in numerous domestic and cross-border M&A and other commercial transactions, including financial institutions M&A, strategic alliances, private equity, equity finance, startups and venture capital investments. He also has considerable expertise in strategy planning at all stages from early stage to PMI and advises on a broad range of legal issues in the field of general corporate matters, including corporate governance, and banking and insurance. Leveraging such significant expertise and experience, he provides attentive expert advice in an effective, practical and timely manner. He also has experience serving as an outside officer for private companies and as a lecturer at a prestigious university and law school in Japan.