KKR, Bain and private equity’s push into Japan

Behind the Money

Topher Forhecz

Markets, Investing, News, Banking, Finance, Business, Business News, Crypto

4.4 • 350 Ratings

🗓️ 26 November 2025

⏱️ 22 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

When international private equity groups first entered Japan at the turn of the 21st century, newspapers criticised them as vulture funds and politicians steered clear of public contact. Today, it’s a different story. Dozens of buyout groups have set up in the country and the establishment is courting them. The FT’s Tokyo correspondent David Keohane and Tokyo bureau chief Leo Lewis explain why there’s been a shift, and how private equity’s presence may rejuvenate Japanese corporates. Clips from Toho.

The FT does not use generative AI to voice its podcasts.

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For further reading:

Is Japan private equity’s next frontier?

Buyout firms play the long game beyond Tokyo

Investors sense this time is different for Japan

KKR-owned auto parts supplier Marelli files for US bankruptcy protection

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Follow David Keohane (@DavidKeo) and Leo Lewis (@Urbandirt) on X. Michela Tindera is on X (@mtindera07) and Bluesky (@mtindera.ft.com), or follow her on LinkedIn for updates about the show and more.

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Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

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Transcript

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0:00.0	What you're hearing
0:03.1	of kioshoek of
0:03.8	society
0:04.1	Kiyo Bayse
0:05.9	to get
0:06.1	the money
0:07.0	What you're hearing
0:09.7	is a trailer from an old
0:11.3	Japanese drama
0:12.3	It's called
0:13.9	Vulture
0:14.3	Or in Japanese
0:16.3	My colleague Leo Lewis The the F.T.'s Tokyo Bureau Chief, loves this.
0:26.0	Hear how locked in he becomes when we watched this trailer together the other day.
0:32.0	Ha ha ha ha ha.
0:36.9	That's y'alleled. Daegiate. Under them.
0:42.8	That is just magnificent, isn't it?
0:43.8	That's brilliant.
0:45.1	Okay.
0:46.9	Do you want me to comment on it?
0:47.6	Yeah, go ahead.
0:49.7	I mean, it was a big phenomenon at the time.
	...

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