Since its foundation, the Sony Financial Group (SFG) has continuously expanded its market share by focusing on its life insurance business thoroughly providing customer-oriented services based on Lifeplanner sales specialists. Moreover, backed by the safety and peace of mind brought by the Sony brand, we ventured into direct non-life insurance and online banking at the dawn of online financial services, establishing solid positions in each field. Today, we have created a financial services group with operations that even encompass areas such as nursing care and venture capital.

It can be said that Sony’s Financial Services business has expanded smoothly so far. However, in order to target further long-term growth while maintaining the financial soundness of the Financial Services business, we believe investment in IT systems and growth investment are essential. Today, as the Sony Group races towards further growth with the entertainment business at its core, we at SFG will develop our own new unique growth strategy and financial foundation, beginning with a partial spin-off from the Sony Group, planned for October 2025. Our listing on the stock market is designed to enable us to continue using the Sony brand while increasing financial flexibility of SFG and pave the way for growth investment. I am committed to enhancing our corporate value during this critical phase, which can be regarded as SFG’s second founding.

SFG’s new Mid-Range Plan, which started in April 2024, focuses on “Exploitation” and “Exploration” based on the concept of “ambidextrous management”. We will aim for sustainable increases in corporate value through both “Exploitation,” the growth of existing businesses, and “Exploration” for further growth. As for “Exploration,” our cross-group initiatives, we are endeavoring to expand our customer base, which is at the heart of our growth strategy, and to create a seamless customer experience from non-financial to financial by inter-business collaboration with the Sony Group, with brand and technology as the two axes. Within fiscal 2024, we also plan to transition to a company with nominating, audit and compensation committees, as our management system, thereby strengthening our management foundation from a governance perspective.

As a business which supports people, SFG decided to define “Kando for Life,” along with “Asset for Life” and “Health for Life,” as our core concept in order to support our customers who live true to themselves in the era of the 100-year lifespan. We have newly defined “Kando for Life,” a base for our customers to live their own lives filled with emotion, in addition to “Health for Life” to live with energy and vibrance and “Asset for Life” to live with financial well-being. SFG will support its customers, recognizing both an enjoyable and uncertain life, continue to be a supportive presence by staying close to people through these three “for Life” concepts, and thereby aim to sustainably increase corporate value.

We will continue to do our utmost to demonstrate to a wide range of stakeholders that we are a unique and distinctive financial services company that provides customers with outstanding value. I would like to express my sincere appreciation for your continuing support.