The number of individual shareholders of companies listed on Japan’s four stock exchanges rose by 4.62 million from a year earlier to a record 74.45 million in fiscal 2023, a survey by the Tokyo Stock Exchange showed on Tuesday.
The increase in the year ended March was due to rising stock prices and a decline in the number of investment units as stock splits by Nippon Telegraph and Telephone and others made it easier for individuals to buy shares.
The number of individual shareholders increased for the tenth year in a row.
About 2.47 million people became shareholders of companies that implemented stock splits, including 1.06 million at NTT, which implemented a 25-for-1 split, and about 110,000 at Tokyo Disney Resort operator Oriental Land and trading house Mitsubishi Corp.
The new Nippon Individual Savings Account (NISA) tax-exempt program for small-dollar investors, which launched in January, also boosted the number of retail investors.
Shares worth ยฅ170.48 trillion ($1.05 trillion) were held by individuals, up about 30% from the previous year and the highest figure ever.
Shares held by foreign entities, which led high stock prices, rose about 40% to ยฅ320.47 trillion. They owned 31.8% of listed shares in terms of value.
