FinTech Jobs in Japan [2026]
Hiring Trends, In-Demand Roles, and Required Skills
FinTech in Japan continues to evolve, and is one of the most dynamic sectors in tech.
To explore what that looks like in practice, I sat down with Adam Plarisan, Manager of our FinTech team at Build+, to talk about the current landscape, hiring trends, and where the market may be heading next.
Adam Plarisan
Manager, Fintech
Adam leads Build+’ FinTech team with a focus on business-side roles like sales, marketing, business development and customer success.
Originally from the Philippines, Adam joined Build+ in 2020 as an Associate Consultant and was named top biller three times before stepping into his current role as Manager.
Outside of work, he enjoys music, travel, working out, and spending time with his mame shiba Hajime.
Adam Plarisan
Manager, FinTech at Build+
The Importance of FinTech
Q: From your perspective, what makes Japan’s FinTech market interesting right now?
I think one important thing to understand is that FinTech in Japan is often not really about “finance” in the traditional sense. It’s more about technology solutions.
A big part of the market, probably 60–70%, is centered around payments. And payments are relevant to almost every business. If a company wants to sell something (e-commerce, social media, or even AI-driven platforms) there always needs to be a way to process that transaction.
That’s why FinTech is interesting. It sits at the center of how businesses grow. As companies look for easier ways to sell and scale, FinTech becomes essential.
At the same time, there are other areas like crypto, which are much more heavily regulated in Japan. That creates a different kind of interest, especially for people who are more focused on compliance or regulatory environments.
Q: Has the market changed noticeably over the last couple of years? If so, how?
One of the biggest changes is the growing role of AI in FinTech, especially in payments.
Payment companies today are not just processing transactions. They are making those transactions smarter. For example, they use AI to detect fraud, identify suspicious behavior, or improve approval rates. That has added another layer to what these companies offer.
We’ve also seen the rise of companies focused specifically on fraud detection, which is still a relatively new space in Japan.
From a hiring perspective, the roles themselves haven’t changed dramatically, but what companies are looking for has shifted slightly. They are less focused on candidates with traditional payment or banking backgrounds, and more interested in people with SaaS or software sales experience, because the sales approach is very similar.
Another big change over the past few years is market entry. Around 2020, a lot of crypto companies tried to enter Japan, and later BNPL companies as well. But many of them ended up pulling out, which shows how challenging the Japan market can be.
The Reality of the FinTech Market in Japan
Q: What kinds of companies fall under FinTech in Japan?
FinTech in Japan is quite broad, but payments are really at the core.
You have payment processors, cross-border payment providers, QR code payments, BNPL services, and crypto companies. There are also backend solutions used by banks or financial institutions.
Within payments alone, there are multiple layers, for example, companies that handle online payment processing, or infrastructure providers that operate behind the scenes and aren’t visible to consumers.
There are also areas like InsurTech and financial infrastructure, but compared to payments, they are less active in terms of hiring, at least from what I see in the market.
Q: What are some of the main categories or sub-sectors you see hiring most actively?
Payments is by far the most active area.
This is largely driven by the growth of e-commerce and the broader shift toward digital payments. People are increasingly paying online or through apps rather than using cash, which creates ongoing demand in this space.
Another important point is the difference between foreign and domestic companies.
Foreign FinTech companies entering Japan tend to hire more on the business side, especially sales, because their product is already built. Their priority is to generate revenue in Japan.
On the other hand, domestic companies often hire more technical roles, because they are building the product and always need to develop new features.
Q: Are there any parts of the market that people outside the industry tend to overlook?
Yes, one area is AI-driven fraud detection.
Most people think about payments when they think of FinTech, but there are also companies focused on preventing fraud and managing transaction risk. This became more important after COVID, when online transactions increased significantly.
It’s still a relatively new area in Japan, but it’s growing and becoming more relevant for companies operating at scale.
In-Demand Roles
Q: On the business side, what kinds of roles are FinTech companies in Japan hiring for most actively right now?
On the business side, it’s very heavily focused on sales-related roles.
The most common positions are Business Development, Account Executives, Account Managers, and Customer Success roles.
For many foreign companies entering Japan, the first hire is usually a country manager or senior sales leader who is responsible for building the market. After that, they typically add account managers or pre-sales roles, and sometimes marketing later on.
Marketing roles do exist, but they are fewer. If a company has a small team in Japan, say 10 to 20 people, they might only have one marketer, but several salespeople. The focus is on revenue generation first.
Q: How do business-side roles in FinTech differ from similar roles in other industries like SaaS or traditional finance?
FinTech roles are actually much closer to SaaS than traditional finance.
Even though it’s financial-related, the product is usually a technology solution, for example, APIs or payment infrastructure rather than something like lending.
Because of that, the sales process is more complex and involves multiple stakeholders. You’re often speaking with technical teams, finance teams, and business stakeholders at the same time.
That’s why companies look for people with SaaS or software sales experience. It’s very different from traditional finance, where the sales process is usually more straightforward.
Q: Which roles have become more important recently, and what’s driving that demand?
Overall, the structure of hiring hasn’t changed that much. It’s still very sales-driven.
What has changed slightly is the expectation. Companies are now looking for people who can handle more complex, solution-based selling and work across multiple stakeholders.
So while the job titles are similar, the level of sophistication required has increased.
Skills Needed to Succeed in FinTech
Q: What skills do companies hiring in FinTech tend to value most on the business side?
It depends on the role, but for business-side positions, companies care less about whether you’ve done a similar job before, and more about what you’ve actually achieved.
For example, in sales roles, they look at things like:
How complex your deals were
How long your sales cycle was
Whether you worked with enterprise or SMB clients
How many stakeholders were involved
Communication and relationship-building are important, but what really stands out is your ability to deliver results in complex environments.
Q: What kinds of backgrounds tend to transfer well into FinTech roles, even if someone hasn’t worked in the industry before?
The most transferable background is SaaS or software sales.
That includes areas like ERP, cloud, or other enterprise software. These roles are very similar in terms of how you sell and who you sell to.
Some types of consulting, especially related to digital transformation or technology can also be relevant.
Interestingly, traditional finance backgrounds are not always a strong fit, especially for commercial roles. Companies are usually more interested in candidates who understand how to sell technology solutions.
The Future of FinTech in Japan
Q: Looking ahead, how do you see the FinTech market in Japan evolving over the next few years?
One of the biggest challenges for FinTech companies in Japan is still regulation.
Getting the right licenses and dealing with regulatory requirements can be very difficult, especially for foreign companies. That’s one of the main reasons why many companies struggle to enter or scale in Japan.
Unless the regulatory environment becomes more flexible, I don’t think it will become significantly easier for new foreign FinTech companies to succeed here.
There may still be opportunities, but the market is likely to remain quite selective.
Q: What kinds of roles or skill sets do you think will become more important in the near future?
I think strong sales capability will continue to be important, especially for people with software or SaaS backgrounds.
Bilingual ability is also a big advantage, since many companies operate in both local and global environments.
But overall, it’s less about specific “FinTech skills” and more about your ability to deliver results, manage stakeholders, and work across teams.
In that sense, achievements and experience will continue to matter more than just having a specific industry background.
Thank you for reading!
If you’re interested in opportunities in Japan’s FinTech industry, get in touch.
Are you hiring in Japan? We can help!
