Japanese securities firms are donating the food and beverage gifts they receive as shareholder perks through their trading activities to nonprofit organizations to support children living in poverty amid inflation.
The Japan Securities Dealers Association started the program in 2020, and around 2,300 donations had been made by March this year.
Ryuta Suzuki, a member of nonprofit organization Bridge for Smile, shows donated shareholder perks in Tokyo on April 28, 2025. (Kyodo)
Under the program, a list of shareholder perks is presented to registered organizations channeling the goods to recipients each week and the organizations then convey their requests to the securities firms. As of April, 61 companies and 48 organizations had registered with the program.
Around 11 tons of rice and 8,600 liters of beverages have been donated, with rice and ready-made foods such as curry among the popular products.
IwaiCosmo Securities Co. previously distributed shareholder perks to younger employees via a lottery as part of its welfare program, but now donates rice and canned goods to organizations.
The Osaka-based brokerage has received feedback that its donations were delivered to single-mother households and served at a gathering of children.
“We feel it is significant that goods are being used by people who really need them,” a company official said.
Monex Inc. has been donating shareholder perks to various organizations across the country since 2024, with an official saying it intends to continue using the program as it is difficult to find recipients on its own.
NPO Bridge for Smile, which supports children and young people who cannot rely on their parents, receives donations of food and disaster stockpiles on a regular basis through the program.
“As there are some people who only have one meal a day due to soaring rice prices, we are grateful that it helps them survive,” said Ryuta Suzuki, a member of the group.
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