Firm linked to biggest IPO in Japan this year offers innovative fix to labour crunch

TOKYO – The developer of an innovative job matchmaking app helping Japan tackle its severe labour shortage went public on July 26 following the nation’s largest initial public offering (IPO) so far this year.

Timee is listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s growth market section at an expected market value of about 138 billion yen (S$1.2 billion). That makes the Tokyo-based firm the biggest among 95 listings of application software companies in Japan since 1994, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

With a chronically low birth rate, ageing population

and strict immigration policy, the labour crunch in the world’s fourth-largest economy is acute. The Bank of Japan’s latest Tankan survey of business sentiment showed shortages are on the rise, particularly among non-manufacturers which are experiencing their worst constraints in more than 30 years.

The service offered by Timee is aimed at filling gaps with so-called “spot work” that matches employers with people seeking jobs for specified periods of time and locations. Such arrangements offer greater flexibility than traditional part-time jobs as well as gig work like ride-sharing and food delivery.

The company will not get any of the roughly US$300 million (S$403 million) in proceeds from the IPO, as the shares are being sold by holders including Mr Ryo Ogawa, the company’s chief executive officer, and internet advertising firm CyberAgent. Still, going public may help the company boost its profile among clients, job seekers and investors.

“We want to offer our service to broader industries such as hotel, nursing care, childcare and manufacturing,” Mr Ogawa said in an interview on July 23. “We’ll aggressively accelerate investment as we gain credibility and a sense of security as a public company,” he added, noting that future mergers and acquisitions are possible.

Most of the start-up’s client companies are in the logistics, catering and retail industries, Mr Ogawa said. While spot work is still a new concept, Timee has already drawn competitors, with Mercari launching a similar service in March and Recruit Holdings planning its own offering for later this year.

Mr Clarence Chu, an analyst at Aequitas Research, said Timee “appears to be a leader in a yet untapped and underpenetrated space”. The company’s stock “could likely end up trading at a premium to its entire peer set”, he wrote in a note on Smartkarma, adding that “over its relatively short operational history, Timee’s growth has been exponential”. BLOOMBERG