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Trader in Japan -
08-31-2008, 03:12 PM
Hi,
I'm a futures trader in Europe (Portugal) and have been thinking of rellocating to Japan - I know the culture, country and know how hard it can be being a gaijin on those islands, but I have a deep fascination for the country and culture [and yes I know it is not paradise... I'm also an anime fan but do have a brain  ].My question is simple [and I apologize if this question was already brought up]: I have a 4 year degree in Economics and am finishing a post-grad in finance. I also have work experience in hedge funds/trading. I'm making plans to move to Japan (the plan is to live and work and learn there for some years) and am wondering how hard will it be to find a job [in my field preferably] and apply for a work Visa in Japan. Regards, Guilherme Diaz-Bérrio 
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08-31-2008, 04:32 PM
You could check out this site...
Jobs in Japan: Jobs - Japan Jobs - Japan News - Japan Info - Japan Apartments - Japan Classifieds - Japan Forums That could give you an idea as to what, and if, they're looking for foreigners in your field of work, and what some requirements may be. Sorry I can't be more helpful, though. Edit: Jobs in Japan : Search jobs - Jobs - Japan Jobs - Japan Info - Japan Apartments - Japan Classifieds - Japan Forums This is a search in the finance/business section.
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09-02-2008, 09:09 PM
Your ability to get a job at a bank/hedge fund will depend on your japanese language ability. Fortuntely for you, sales and trading jobs tend to be less demanding in terms of language, but that just means you will need business level fluency rather than native level.
I know it's a stretch for you, but if you're in the states in November, the Boston Career Forum is hands down the best place to interview finance jobs in Japan. All the big US banks send reps from their Japanese branches. CFN | Boston Career Forum 2008 There is a similar event in London, which would be more doable for you, but it has already passed for this year, so you'd have to wait until next summer to have a crack at that. I'm not sure if it's as large as the Boston one though... CFN | London Career Forum 2008
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09-03-2008, 12:17 PM
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I have a degree in journalism and really have no finance/trading knowledge, so I went just for interviewing experience. I interviewed with RBS, JPMorgan and Societe Generale, and all three interviews were in English and spoke nothing of Japan. As expected though, I didn't get past the first round for any of them, so they MAY ask about "why Japan" as you move past the rounds. But my friend got his job in Boston last year, can't speak Japanese, arrived in Tokyo a month ago, and still can't speak much. It would also depend on what position you're interested in. I'd assume front office requires the least amount of Japanese compared to back/middle. A lot of people who attend BCF can't speak Japanese at all and some don't even have any interest in Japan, but only go since all the major investment banks have booths there. So speaking a bit of Japanese could give you a boost, but I'd say for finance, they mostly look at your degree/experience, and it looks like you're in good shape. Good luck! 
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09-03-2008, 02:42 PM
Regarding what Crea said, it is true that you can get a job with no japanese skill at all. However, those jobs are almost all for US-based banks Finance divisions, which is more or less accounting (Operations jobs are also primarily in english). It sounds to me like you'd rather be in Sales & Trading, which is more japanese-language intensive, and those interviews will almost certainly be done in japanese. If you have significant experience in the field (and it sounds like you do), they may cut you a bit more slack.
Crea is spot on about you almost certainly be asked "Why Japan" by pretty much anybody you interview with. If I were you, I'd avoid mentioning anime at all in your answer... Two things worth noting about BCF: 1) It is primarily for recent college grads, so most of the jobs are entry level positions. Unless you have enough experience to be qualified for an associate level position at a bank, be prepared to start at the bottom. 2) If you pass the first round of interviews, most banks will invite you to dinner that night. These dinners are almost as important as the interviews themselves, as you get a ton of face time in front of the people. When you get peoples' business cards while interviewing, figure out who the highest ranked people are and try to sit near them at dinner. At the end of the day, it's the Associates and MDs that make the call, not the analysts. Bring your A game... Hope that helps
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09-03-2008, 03:14 PM
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My gf works for an American investment bank in Tokyo, and all of their traders are foreigners. None arrived in Japan with language skills, though all had a fair amount of work experience before arriving. If you have a post-graduate education, you might be able to find employment in one of the international universities located in Japan teaching finance. Japanese language ability would be somewhat important for this type of job, you would need to be able to speak at a conversational level.
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09-03-2008, 09:28 PM
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 But Sangetsu is right, the American investment banks primarily hire non-japanese for everything but their investment banking divisions. I interviewed with a guy who had been working in Japan for almost a decade and had only basic japanese language skills... Then again, with you being from Portugal, I guess the real question is how good is your english??
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