Deals for Startups Reach Record in Japan Before Listing Curbs

A plan to cull the smallest listings on the Tokyo Stock Exchange is spurring a record number of buyouts of young companies in Japan, reflecting Tokyo’s push to create more billion-dollar startups to better match the country’s global standing in scientific research.

Regulators are ratcheting up pressure on startups to gain more scale before debuting on the stock market, warning that the TSE will seek to delistcompanies that fail to reach a market value of at least ¥10 billion ($66 million) within five years of going public, starting 2030. More than 60% of the roughly 600 companies on Tokyo’s ...