Japan Govt to Invest 100 B. Yen in Chipmaker Rapidus

Tokyo, Nov. 21 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s industry ministry decided Friday to invest 100 billion yen in Rapidus Corp., which aims to mass-produce cutting-edge chips domestically. In addition to becoming the chipmaker’s largest stockholder, the Japanese government will also hold a so-called golden share that gives it veto rights over key management decisions such as director appointments. Rapidus showed in a business strategy a plan to go public in fiscal 2031. The 100-billion-yen investment will be made through the government-affiliated Information-Technology Promotion Agency. “It’s a national project that must succeed for the national interest,” industry minister Ryosei Akazawa told a press conference the same day. The minister emphasized the significance of supporting Rapidus as the company needs to strengthen its financial base in order to attract private-sector investment. The government decided on the investment based on a report from an expert panel that concluded the company’s business strategy is reasonable. The state plans to spend more than 1 trillion yen on Rapidus through investment and consignment expenses in fiscal 2026 to fiscal 2027, and help the company secure over 2 trillion yen in private-sector loans with debt guarantees. The private sector is expected to invest about 130 billion yen in Rapidus in fiscal 2025, and the firm aims to secure more investments to increase the total to about 1 trillion yen. Rapidus plans to start mass-producing semiconductors with a circuit line width of 2 nanometers in fiscal 2027. It plans to advance miniaturization every two to three years to achieve mass production of 1.4- and 1-nanometer chips. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]