Background

I was born and raised in Kyoto, Japan, and after graduating from middle school, I moved to Tokyo to attend high school, where I lived by myself at the age of 15. I received my Bachelor of Information Engineering from University of Tsukuba in 2013. I completed a graduation academic thesis about image recognition technology when I was in Tsukuba. While being a Tsukuba student, I also spent an extra year at University of California Irvine as an exchange student. Besides computer science, I have been passionately involved in equity research since 2008. My costly experience of losing money in the 2008 financial crisis somehow further motivated me to pursue a finance career. Hoping to become a world-class financial professional and hoping to uncover the secrets of capital markets, I chose to join Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management in 2013.

Career Path

At Mitsubishi UFJ, my consistent mission was to manage operational risks using IT solutions. I helped introduce a new trading system (OMS: Order Management System), which significantly eliminated human errors when trading foreign futures. I led a taskforce for new disclosure systems complying with Basel III criteria of risk measurement. When my employer merged with another company, Kokusai Asset Management, I led some of crucial projects for integrating operational flows. In my 3+ years at Mitsubishi UFJ I had contributed to the company’s business well, but I still aspired to become a finance professional that could make positive impacts not only on a company but on the global economy. Seeking the best environment to enhance my career as a finance/business professional, I decided to study at UNC Kenan-Flagler for my MBA.

Interests and Hobbies

I love to travel across the United States and around the world. In 2011, I visited 10+ states on a month-long trip via Amtrak. While travelling in Egypt, I was chased after and attacked by the Egyptian army, which actually made me aware of the truth of the Arab Spring. I am fond of stock trading (though I needed to close most of my positions to get enough cash for my MBA), and am eager to learn more about US companies. I am currently collecting all of the new designs of the US quarter.  When I can, I like to go running and skiing, although studying at Kenan-Flagler doesn’t leave me with much free time.