The Tokyo Stock Exchange Group, Inc. (“TSE”) today announced that it will acquire the remaining 49% in TOKYO AIM, Inc. (“TOKYO AIM”) currently held by the London Stock Exchange plc. Effective 28th March 2012 TOKYO AIM will become a 100% subsidiary of TSE. There will be no change to TOKYO AIM’s market operations as an immediate result of this announcement.
The TSE plans to integrate TOKYO AIM into the Tokyo Stock Exchange effective 1st July 2012 and re-brand the TOKYO AIM market as ‘TOKYO PRO Market’. The necessary changes to the rules and regulations are open for public comment and are available at March 28th.
Atsushi Saito, President & CEO of the TSE, said: “We are thankful for having had access to the London Stock Exchange’s great experience through jointly operating TOKYO AIM. Ever since the establishment of TOKYO AIM, we have been deeply committed to further growing the professional investor market in Tokyo and providing growing companies in Asia with alternative funding options. We look forward to continuing and expanding our offering of attractive funding and investment opportunities as a ‘multi-asset’ exchange with global reach.”
Launched in 2009, TOKYO AIM provides alternative funding options for growing companies in Japan and Asia, giving them access to a capital market specifically tailored for their needs and to a wider investor base, while creating new investment opportunities for Japanese and international professional investors. The creation of TOKYO AIM became possible following the revision of the Japanese Financial Instruments and Exchange Act passed in June 2008.