Bridging Innovation Across Asia: Reflections on Our Journey Through Japan and the Philippines

Our recent journey through Japan and the Philippines affirmed the many opportunities that lie ahead for Asian capital markets and broader financial sector. Across the region, we’re seeing markets at different stages of modernization – but with a shared ambition: to build more inclusive and resilient financial ecosystems that can power economic growth.

At Nasdaq, we’re proud to be a partner in this journey – helping enhance transparency, protect integrity and promote liquidity of our markets through modernization. Collectively with the community of our clients we aim to enable capital formation and build a connected global financial infrastructure through the transformative power of technology.

The below are some of the key takeaways from the trip that highlight the innovation in the region.

Japan: Innovation in a Mature Market

Japan is one of the most advanced capital markets in the world, and it continues to drive reform and policies that drive economic activity. One key area of progress is the revamped Nippon Individual Savings Account (NISA), which is catalyzing investor participation. As of March 2024, there were approximately 23.2 million NISA accounts with total investments of ¥41.6 trillion (~$270 billion) (FSA Japan). While investors in their 40s and 50s hold the majority of assets, younger generations are entering the market in growing numbers – reflecting a gradual cultural shift in financial engagement.

Corporate governance reforms are also taking root. The Tokyo Stock Exchange now mandates that all Prime Market-listed companies provide disclosures in both Japanese and English – a strategic step toward improving transparency and attracting global capital. In parallel, new protections for minority shareholders and clearer guidance on capital efficiency are reshaping corporate behavior and investor expectations.

These efforts reflect a broader national strategy: to revitalize Japan’s economy through capital markets. And underpinning all of it is a recognition that modern infrastructure – powered by cutting-edge technology – will be key to unlocking long-term growth.

Philippines: A Leap Forward in Market Infrastructure

In the Philippines, we saw firsthand the energy of a market in transformation. The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) recently announced it will adopt Nasdaq’s Eqlipse Trading platform—a next-generation solution that enhances trading performance, scalability, and resiliency. This move marks a major milestone in the country’s journey to upgrade its capital markets and align PSE with the world’s most advanced exchanges.

Equally inspiring was my visit to our Manila office, where I met with over 450 talented Nasdaq colleagues—many in their early careers—who support every aspect of our global business across Financial Technology, Investor Relations, Governance Solutions, and eVestment. The energy, curiosity, and sense of purpose among the team was inspiring. These professionals are not only shaping the future of Nasdaq, but also contributing to the broader transformation of markets across the region.

The Transformational Role of Cloud and AI in Capital Markets

From Japan to the Philippines – and far beyond – it’s clear that technology will play a critical role as financial institutions navigate forces of disruption. Cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) are already changing how exchanges operate, how investors make decisions, and how risk is managed.

Nasdaq’s strategic collaboration with AWS is designed to capitalize on this transformation, from moving our core matching engine to the cloud, to providing a proven blueprint that incorporates our learnings, best practices and operational expertise to help transform other markets around the world. Our vision is to unleash innovation by turning noise into intelligence, and ultimately to create a more agile, scalable, and resilient global financial infrastructure.

With AI, we see the opportunity to power smarter surveillance, enhance market integrity, improve investor access to information, and detect systemic risks before they emerge. Whether through AI-enabled anomaly detection or predictive analytics, we are entering a new frontier of data-driven decision-making.

In this new era, market operators must become forward leaning technology companies at their core – combining infrastructure expertise with cloud-native capabilities and AI innovation to create trust and resilience.

An Optimistic Future for Capital Markets

We are at the early stage of a profound transformation in global markets, with the ambition to create a stronger, more inclusive financial systems – and the momentum is growing.

At Nasdaq, our mission is to be the trusted technology partner for these journeys. By modernizing infrastructure, enabling access to capital, and connecting markets through technology, we can help unlock economic potential and build financial systems that work better – for everyone.

The future of markets is not only bright – it is being built today.