The KAISHA SHIKIHO, which TOYO KEIZAI has been publishing since its launch in 1936, has for many years been widely recognized by individual and institutional investors in Japan as the information infrastructure for the Japanese stock market. Listed companies have been willing to cooperate in TOYO KEIZAI's independent surveys in appreciation of the KAISHA SHIKIHO being the de facto information infrastructure standard for the Japanese stock market and based on the relationships of trust that TOYO KEIZAI has been cultivating for a long time with listed companies.

No, TOYO KEIZAI does not provide investment advisory services as defined under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act (Article 2, Paragraph 8, Item 11). Moreover, Section VII-3-1-(2)-(ii)-A-a of the Comprehensive Guidelines for the Supervision of Financial Instruments Business Operators, etc., specifically mentions "sales of newspapers, magazines, books, etc." as "Activities Not Deemed to Fall under Category of Investment Advisory and Agency Services." Since TOYO KEIZAI's databases are provided also in print, provision of the databases does not constitute Investment Advisory and Agency Services.

No, we do not engage in investment activities for our own account. We also generally prohibit employees assigned to departments with day-to-day access to information on pre-publication periodicals, etc., including our databases, or access to material undisclosed corporate information from engaging in trading of individual securities, etc. If, in an exceptional case, an employee engages in investing as an individual, we require that prior approval of the trade, etc., be obtained and impose guidance and supervision to ensure compliance with the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act (Insider Trading Regulations). In addition, we conduct regular in-house training.

No. Although we do not disclose our securities reports as we are an unlisted company, we have no parent company or specific shareholders that could influence our management policy, and we conduct our reporting and research from a neutral perspective.

We have been providing our databases since the 1980s.

Yes, databases are disseminated to all customers simultaneously when provided via FTP. Other than simultaneous provision via FTP, we may also provide the databases to customers at their chosen points in time.

We have around 150 users among financial institutions in Japan and overseas, including asset management companies, hedge funds (quants, fundamentals, and multi-strategy, etc.), and securities companies. Additionally, we have many users among general business companies, universities, and research institutes.

Data collection for our database offerings is generally conducted in-house. Some databases contain items such as indices subject to copyrights of third parties, for which we pay license fees to the copyright holders and provide with their permission.

While TOYO KEIZAI may acquire insider information through its interview activities, the information contained in the provided databases does not include insider information, as the information contained is in principle data already published elsewhere through timely disclosure, etc. We may occasionally publish exclusive scoops and other information that have not been published elsewhere. However, since we are categorized as a news organization, persons other than company insiders who acquire such information through our media such as "TOYO KEIZAI Online" constitute "secondary information recipients" that are outside the scope of insider trading regulations for the purposes of the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act.

*The above explanation is based on the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act of Japan. With regard to regulations of other countries, we are of the view that by the time we provide our databases, the database information would already have been published in our media (as we strive to disclose information through our own media as a news organization) as well as other companies' media, and thus broadly disseminated "to the public domain." Even so, since interpretations may differ depending on the location and the country where you use our database, you are welcome to contact us for further information.

Yes. As a media and news organization, we acquire, use, and hold personal information in our activities, and some databases, such as the "Major Shareholders Database" and the "Director's Profile Database" contain personal information. However, the Act on the Protection of Personal Information, Article 76 (Exclusion from Application), stipulates that "Broadcasting institutions, newspaper publishers, communication agencies and other press organizations," when handling personal information "for use in the press" or "for use in writing, etc.," are excluded from the application of the provisions of Chapter IV (Obligations etc. of a Personal Information Handling Business Operator) (exclusion from application of broadcasting and professional writing, etc.). Nonetheless, our policy is to voluntarily promote the appropriate handling of personal information notwithstanding the exclusion provision for "use in the press." To this end, we continue to make every effort to review and improve as necessary the handling of personal information that we acquire, use, and hold for the purpose of news reporting, writing, and academic research. We promise to maintain proper handling of personal information for the purpose of news reporting, writing, and academic research that contributes at all times to the furtherance of the common good.

Our privacy policy can be found at https://corp.toyokeizai.net/privacy-policy/

Other than using XBRL to collect data from sources such as EDINET of the Financial Services Agency and TDnet of JPX, we do not make use of any automated data collection methods.

No.

Yes, we are.

Yes, our Compliance Department with 14 staff members.

No.