logo
Dai-ichi Life to buy $1.1 billion M&G stake in partnership

Dai-ichi Life to buy $1.1 billion M&G stake in partnership

Japan Times30-05-2025
Dai-ichi Life Holdings and M&G have struck a distribution partnership that will see the Japanese firm take a roughly $1.1 billion stake in the U.K. money manager.
Japan's largest listed life insurer plans to buy about a 15% stake via on-market purchases, according to a statement on Friday. The stake would make Dai-ichi Life the largest shareholder of M&G, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Shares in M&G rose as much as 8.6% in early London trading, its biggest intraday gain since February 2023.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Tokyo stocks hit a fourth all-time high in six trading days
Tokyo stocks hit a fourth all-time high in six trading days

Japan Times

time10 hours ago

  • Japan Times

Tokyo stocks hit a fourth all-time high in six trading days

Tokyo stocks reached all-time highs for a second consecutive day and for the fourth time in six trading days, and then languished through to the close and ended down 0.38%. The Nikkei 225 stock index reached the record — of 43,876.42 — right after the open in the morning on Tuesday, beating the previous high of 43,835.12 set Monday. Fresh news has been lacking this week after stocks rallied last week on optimism related to recent trade agreements, positive economic statistics and peace talks. Share prices continued to move up Monday mainly on momentum and the lack of any bad news. Overnight, stocks traded indecisively and with little conviction. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 fell slightly Monday, while the Nasdaq Composite index increased 0.03%. In Tokyo, Mitsubishi UFJ dropped 2.63% on Tuesday. SoftBank Group, which announced a $2 billion investment in Santa Clara, California's Intel, fell 4.01% after a brief surge following the news. Pharmaceutical companies continued the rally on Tuesday, with Daiichi Sankyo rising by 4.78% and Chugai Pharmaceutical 4.45%. The yen weakened, briefly rising above ¥148 to the dollar and trading at about ¥147.6 in the afternoon. The Nikkei 225 hit record highs on Tuesday and Wednesday last week, then retreated Thursday after U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made comments that suggested Japan needs to raise its interest rates. Stocks did not reach another all-time high on Friday but still managed to end the day at a new closing high after data showed the Japanese economy performed beyond expectations in the second quarter. Real GDP in the three months ended in June rose by an annualized 1%. On Monday, the benchmark rose after trading started and spent most of the day in positive territory, hitting an all-time high during the day and ending up 0.77% at 43,714.31, a record close.

U.S. spy chief Gabbard says U.K. will drop data 'backdoor' order for Apple
U.S. spy chief Gabbard says U.K. will drop data 'backdoor' order for Apple

Japan Times

time11 hours ago

  • Japan Times

U.S. spy chief Gabbard says U.K. will drop data 'backdoor' order for Apple

U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said Monday that the U.K. had agreed to drop its mandate for iPhone-maker Apple to provide a "backdoor" that would have enabled access to the protected encrypted data of American citizens. Gabbard issued the statement on X, saying she had worked for months with the U.K., together with U.S. President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, to arrive at a deal. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was in Washington on Monday along with other European leaders to meet Trump and discuss Russia's war in Ukraine. The U.K. government and Apple did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Gabbard's statement. U.S. lawmakers said in May that the U.K.'s order to Apple to create a backdoor to its encrypted user data could be exploited by cybercriminals and authoritarian governments. Apple, which has said it would never build such access into its encrypted services or devices, had challenged the order at the U.K.'s Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT). The iPhone-maker withdrew its Advanced Data Protection feature for U.K. users in February following the U.K. order. Users of Apple's iPhones, Macs and other devices can enable the feature to ensure that only they — and not even Apple — can unlock data stored on its cloud. U.S. officials said earlier this year they were examining whether the U.K. broke a bilateral agreement by demanding that Apple build a backdoor allowing the British government to access backups of data in the company's encrypted cloud storage systems. In a letter dated February 25 to U.S. lawmakers, Gabbard said the U.S. was examining whether the U.K. government had violated the CLOUD Act, which bars it from issuing demands for the data of U.S. citizens and vice versa. Cybersecurity experts said that if Apple chose to build a backdoor for a government, that backdoor would eventually be found and exploited by hackers. Apple has sparred with regulators over encryption as far back as 2016, when the U.S. government tried to compel it to build a tool to unlock the iPhone of a suspected extremist.

Tokyo crowned No.1 'workation' spot
Tokyo crowned No.1 'workation' spot

Japan Times

time11 hours ago

  • Japan Times

Tokyo crowned No.1 'workation' spot

Tokyo is the world's best city to take a 'workation,' or a working vacation, thanks to infrastructure for remote work, safety, culture and a new digital nomad visa, according to a new global ranking. The annual Work from Anywhere Barometer survey compiled by the International Workplace Group, a Swiss-based firm that provides coworking and serviced corporate spaces globally, scored 40 different cities across various factors, including flexible workspaces, accessibility of digital nomad visas, quality of broadband and proximity to nature. Tokyo topped the rankings for its 'exceptional broadband speeds, transport infrastructure, safety, culture, and new digital nomad visa.' 'The city also benefits from proximity to mountains, coastal regions, and national parks — ideal for hybrid workers seeking an exciting urban atmosphere alongside natural escapes,' the survey said. Japan's capital beat out last year's winner, Budapest, and surpassed other competitors such as Barcelona, Beijing and Paris. This was the first year Tokyo was included in the rankings, and it remains the only Japanese city in the group. The number of cities has increased over the three years the survey has been held. In 2025, Seoul, Cairo, Cape Town, Melbourne, Rome, Mexico City, Orlando in Florida, Prague and Reykjavik were added to the list. In April 2024, Japan launched a digital nomad visa, echoing moves by other countries wanting to capitalize on an increasingly global workforce hoping to work remotely outside of their home countries. Last year, 257 digital nomad visas were issued by Japan. The visa allows individuals whose annual income is ¥10 million ($68,300) or more to work in Japan for up to six months. Passport holders from 51 countries and territories are granted access to the visa, with self-employed individuals also eligible. Spouses and children of individuals from most countries are also included under the visa umbrella. Partially fueled by the weakness of the yen against stronger currencies, tourism in Japan is booming. According to the Japan National Tourism Organization, the number of foreign visitors for the first half of this year reached a record 21.52 million, up from 17.78 million in the same period last year. Many of the factors that have drawn tourists were also cited in the annual IWG report. Tokyo scored highly on 'cultural quality,' with a high number of Michelin-starred restaurants and cultural events cited. It also performed highly on affordability of food. Rio de Janeiro was just one point behind Tokyo, followed by Budapest. In Asia, Seoul was ranked fourth and Beijing came in sixth. Workations were a burgeoning trend in the corporate world for a number of years before being turbocharged by the COVID-19 pandemic. Estimates of the number of digital nomads globally vary, but the most commonly cited number is 40 million, sourced from data marketing firm Demand Sage. In Japan, domestic workations have also gained popularity. During the pandemic, a number of national parks in Japan installed Wi-Fi and portable workstations to entice workers. 'With so many jobs now relying on heavy computer use, it's more important than ever to take regular screen breaks. ... Leaving your desk to get a cup of coffee is great. Drinking that coffee while sitting on the lake shore, or watching birds flit through the foliage, is even better,' the Japan National Tourism Organization website said.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store