September 9th, 2024
In an effort to strengthen the mission of Invest in Madrid, and with the aim of continuing to attract investment projects to the Madrid region, we have carried out our first economic action in Japan, visiting various investment funds, companies, and corporations located in Tokyo and Nagoya over the course of four days.
Japan is not only the largest Asian investor in Spain and Madrid, but of the €11.06 billion that Japanese companies have allocated to Spain since 1993, 75% has gone to Madrid (€8.33 billion). Additionally, of the 500 Japanese companies headquartered in Spain, nearly half (47.9%) are located in the Madrid region, employing over 31,600 people.
This economic mission builds on the collaboration agreement signed in July by the President of the Madrid region, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, and the Governor of the Aichi Prefecture, Hideaki Ohmura, aimed at strengthening investment relations, especially in industry, innovation, and digitalization.
Thus, we had the opportunity to meet and present to various entities what our region offers and facilitates for starting a business:
NTT DATA, a leading company in the technology sector, which has its most important center in Europe and Latin America in our region, and leads innovation in sustainability and AI in Europe from here.
Fujitsu, which allocates 3% of its revenue to R&D&I, and with whom we have discussed potential investment opportunities in digitalization in Madrid, with a particular focus on talent and training. Fujitsu is also part of the Digital Transformation Advisory Board of the Madrid region.
Mitsubishi Corporation, headquartered in Tokyo, showing great interest in our region as a gateway for investments from Latin America.
Pimco, a fund that works with Japanese investors in data centers and AI. During our meeting, they confirmed that Madrid is already a Tier 1 destination in these sectors. We also discussed future investments, and they expressed interest in our region’s strategic projects.
Kikuchi & Partners, a law firm specializing in trade relations between Spain and Japan, with whom we explored opportunities for their clients in Madrid. The Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Japan also joined this meeting.
Station AI, an initiative to boost startups and open innovation aiming to become Japan’s leading entrepreneurship hub. With them, we presented investment opportunities for startups and the strength of the Madrid ecosystem, and they showed particular interest in participating in South Summit 2025.
Aichi Prefecture University, which expressed interest in our region as a tech talent hub, and with whom we discussed the talent in Madrid to enhance collaboration with universities.
The Spanish Embassy in Japan, where we met with Fidel Sendagorta, Spain’s Ambassador to Japan, and Gonzalo Ramos, Chief Economic and Commercial Counselor at the Spanish Embassy in Tokyo. We discussed the outlook for trade and investment relations between both markets.
Knowledge Hub Aichi, an innovation and knowledge center focused on advanced research, technological development, and collaboration between academia, businesses, and the public sector in areas such as AI, robotics, and industry.
Additionally, we organized various meetings in Nagoya with entities and corporations focused on foreign investment from Japanese companies, funds, and startups. All of them showed interest in the innovative ecosystem of the Madrid region and the strength of our region in high value-added industrial sectors.
Thanks to these meetings, we have continued to strengthen institutional, commercial, and investment relations with Japan, furthering our commitment to high value-added industries in sectors such as digitalization, AI, automotive, mobility, and logistics, among others.
Madrid is a hub of global opportunities, Spain’s economic engine, with highly competitive tax policies, administrative agility, and unstoppable leadership in growth.