Financial Instruments and Exchange Act

Notwithstanding the provisions of Article 29 and Article 80, paragraph (1), with the authorization of the Prime Minster, the operator of a foreign financial instruments market may allow the persons set forth in the following items to effect purchase and sales of securities and foreign market derivatives transactions on the foreign financial instruments market (with regard to the person set forth in item (ii), this is limited to transactions involving the services of a registered financial institution) through a connection between its electronic data processing system and the input and output devices used by those persons (hereinafter referred to as the "input and output devices connected to a foreign financial instruments exchange"):

a financial instruments business operator; and

a registered financial institution.

The provisions of Article 30-2 apply mutatis mutandis to the authorization referred to the preceding paragraph.

A person seeking the authorization referred to in paragraph (1) of the preceding Article must designate a domestic representative and submit a written application for authorization to the Prime Minister, in which it states the following particulars:

its trade name or name;

the location of its head office or principle office;

the location of its office in Japan, if any;

the titles and names of its officers;

the name and domestic address of its domestic representative;

the types and names of the foreign financial instruments markets in which the participants in the foreign financial instruments exchange (meaning the persons that make the purchase and sales of securities and foreign market derivatives transactions on the foreign financial instruments market, using input and output devices connected to the foreign financial instruments exchange (hereinafter the transaction is referred to as a "foreign market transaction"); the same applies hereinafter) conduct foreign market transactions;

the trade names or names of participants in the foreign financial instruments exchange; and

other particulars specified by Cabinet Office Order.

The following documents must accompany the written application for authorization referred to in the preceding paragraph:

the articles of incorporation, as well as the operational rules and brokerage contract rules for foreign market transactions (including anything equivalent to these; hereinafter referred to as the "operational regulations" in this Chapter);

documents stating the things specified by Cabinet Office Order as constituting the business outline and business methods concerning foreign market transactions; and

other documents specified by Cabinet Office Order.

When an application for authorization under paragraph (1) of the preceding Article is filed, the Prime Minister must examine whether the application conforms to the following criteria:

the applicant for authorization has obtained the same kind of license as that referred to in Article 80, paragraph (1) or has obtained permission or any other administrative disposition similar to the license in the state where its head office or principle office is located;

the applicant for authorization is able to take the necessary measures to cause a participant in the foreign financial instruments exchange which has violated a law or regulation, a disposition by a government agency which is based on a law or regulation (hereinafter referred to as "laws and regulations, etc." in this item and Article 155-10), or the operational regulations, observe the laws and regulations, etc. or operational regulations; and

the operational regulations of the applicant for authorization are sufficient for ensuring that the foreign market transactions that the participants in the foreign financial instruments exchange conduct are fair and smooth, and for protecting investors.

If, as a result of having conducted an examination pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph, the Prime Minister finds that an application conforms to the criteria in that paragraph, the Prime Minister must grant the authorization, except in a case that falls under any of the following items:

the applicant for authorization is a person for whom the period specified by Cabinet Order after the establishment of the foreign financial instruments market for having participants in the foreign financial instruments exchange conduct foreign market transactions has not passed (unless this falls under a case specified by Cabinet Order);

the applicant for authorization is a person that has been sentenced to a fine (including an equivalent sentence under foreign laws and regulations) for violating the provisions of this Act or the Act on the Provision of Financial Services and the Development of the Accessible Environment Thereto or for violating the provisions of a foreign law or regulation that is equivalent to one of these Acts, and five years have not passed since the day on which the person finished serving the sentence or ceased to be subject to its enforcement;

the applicant for authorization is a person that has had the authorization referred to in Article 155, paragraph (1) rescinded pursuant to the provisions of Article 155-6 or Article 155-10, paragraph (1); a person that has had the license referred to in Article 156-20-2 rescinded pursuant to the provisions of Article 156-20-14, paragraph (1) or (2); a person that has had the registration referred to in Article 29 or Article 33-2 rescinded pursuant to the provisions of Article 52, paragraph (1) or (4), Article 52-2, paragraph (1) or (3), Article 53, paragraph (3), Article 54, or Article 57-6, paragraph (3); a person that has had the permission referred to in Article 60, paragraph (1) rescinded pursuant to the provisions of Article 60-8, paragraph (1) or Article 60-9, paragraph (1); a person that has had the permission referred to in Article 60-14, paragraph (1) rescinded pursuant to the provisions of Article 60-8, paragraph (1) or Article 60-9, paragraph (1) as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to Article 60-14, paragraph (2); a person that has had the registration referred to in Article 66 rescinded pursuant to the provisions of Article 66-20, paragraph (1); a person that has had the registration referred to in Article 66-27 rescinded pursuant to the provisions of Article 66-42, paragraph (1) or (3); a person that has had the registration referred to in Article 66-50 rescinded pursuant to the provisions of Article 66-63, paragraph (1) or (3) or Article 66-64; or a person that has had the registration referred to in Article 66-71 rescinded pursuant to the provisions of Article 66-85, paragraph (1) or (3); or a person that has had the registration referred to in Article 12 of the Act on the Provision of Financial Services and the Development of the Accessible Environment Thereto (limited to the registration related to the type of securities, etc. intermediary business operations; the same applies in this item) rescinded pursuant to the provisions of Article 38, paragraph (1) (excluding items (ii), (iii), and (v)) or paragraph (4) of that Act; or is a person that had a registration or license of the same kind as the registration referred to in Article 29, Article 66, Article 66-27, Article 66-50, or Article 66-71 or the license referred to in Article 80, paragraph (1), Article 156-2, or Article 156-24, paragraph (1) or the registration referred to in Article 12 of that Act obtained in the state where its head office or principal office is located (including permission or any other administrative disposition similar to such a registration or license) rescinded; for whom five years have not passed since the date of the rescission;

the applicant for authorization has a person falling under any of the following persons as an officer or domestic representative;

a person specified by Cabinet Office Order as being unable to properly perform business due to a mental or physical disorder; or

a person falling under any of Article 82, paragraph (2), item (iii), (a), (b), or (e);

the authority responsible for the enforcement of the foreign laws or regulations that are equivalent to this Act in the country where the head office or principal office of the applicant for authorization is located has not given the assurance prescribed in Article 189, paragraph (2), item (i) or anything else that is found to be equivalent to the assurance; and

the written application for authorization, or a document that is required to be attached to it contains a false statement regarding a material particular.