Japan Govt to Invest ¥100 Billion in Chipmaker Rapidus

Jiji Press

13:26 JST, November 22, 2025

TOKYO (Jiji Press) — Japan’s industry ministry decided Friday to invest ¥100 billion in Rapidus Corp., which aims to mass-produce cutting-edge chips domestically.

In addition to becoming the chipmaker’s largest stockholder, the government will also hold a so-called golden share that gives it veto rights over key management decisions such as director appointments.

Rapidus showed in a business strategy a plan to go public in fiscal 2031.

The ¥100 billion investment will be made through the government-affiliated Information-Technology Promotion Agency.

“It’s a national project that must succeed for the national interest,” industry minister Ryosei Akazawa told a press conference the same day. The minister emphasized the significance of supporting Rapidus as the company needs to strengthen its financial base in order to attract private-sector investment.

The government decided on the investment based on a report from an expert panel that concluded the company’s business strategy is reasonable.

The state plans to spend more than ¥1 trillion on Rapidus through investment and consignment expenses in fiscal 2026 to fiscal 2027, and help the company secure over ¥2 trillion in private-sector loans with debt guarantees.

The private sector is expected to invest about ¥130 billion in Rapidus in fiscal 2025, and the firm aims to secure more investments to increase the total to about ¥1 trillion .

Rapidus plans to start mass-producing semiconductors with a circuit line width of 2 nanometers in fiscal 2027. It plans to advance miniaturization every two to three years to achieve mass production of 1.4- and 1-nanometer chips.