Takashi Ishizuki, President and CEO of au Jibun Bank, Inc.

Clarify early on what makes you happy and work towards achieving it.

President and CEO of au Jibun Bank, Inc.　Takashi Ishizuki(Takashi Ishizuki)

■ Profile
He joined KDDI (formerly DDI Corporation) in 1990 and served as General Manager of Business Development at the New Business Promotion Division of the New Business Headquarters, President and Representative Director of au Financial Services, and President and Representative Director of au Kabucom Securities, before becoming President and Representative Director of au Jibun Bank in August 2022.

Established in 2008 through joint investment from KDDI and Mitsubishi UFJ Bank, au Jibun Bank is an online bank that provides full banking services primarily for smartphones, pioneering unprecedented services. President Ishizuki Takashi says, "The important thing is to act independently and with initiative," and we spoke to him about the company's founding, along with his message to university students.

■ My reckless college days, challenging myself to the fullest

During my student days, I lived freely, recklessly trying to do anything I could, something I could only do at that time. I did a variety of part-time jobs, including tutoring, moving, and bartending. My style was to go somewhere once I had saved up some money. The Tom Cruise movie "Top Gun" was popular at the time, and I was so inspired by the desire to actually visit the Miramar Naval Base that I stayed in San Diego for two months. I made friends there and rented a car and went to Las Vegas, and I had a great time (laughs). Meanwhile, when it came to employment, I had long wanted to join a company that provides services and businesses that enrich people's lives. After much deliberation, I decided to join Daini Denden Co., Ltd. (now KDDI Corporation). Telecommunications is the foundation of communication, essential to people's lives, but at the time, the costs were still quite high and a cause for concern. I simply thought that by joining a company that could lower telephone charges in Japan, I could enrich people's lives.

■ From the corporate department to launching the au PAY card business, he became the CEO of au Jibun Bank

When I joined the company, I was in the Public Relations Department, then transferred to the Finance Department, where I worked for a long time in the so-called Corporate Division. As the year 2000 came around and an era had already arrived where everyone had their own mobile phone, I was thinking about the next growth opportunity for the company, even though I wasn't in the business division. Around that time, I got excited talking to a person in charge at Mitsubishi UFJ Bank (then UFJ Bank) about "creating an internet bank together with KDDI," and we arranged a meeting to discuss the business. This was the catalyst for the establishment of au Jibun Bank (then Jibun Bank), and my involvement in finance.
As a result of this arrangement, I was seconded to au Jibun Bank, where I worked for six years from its founding. After that, I returned to KDDI, where my mission was to explore financial services that could be integrated into the telecommunications business. This led to the birth of the au PAY concept. To realize this concept, I needed a credit card company, and so I founded au Financial Services. I'm not exaggerating; I started out thinking about the business from a single A4 sheet of paper. Based on my experience founding a bank, I believed that the person who felt the most passionate about the company should be the one to run it. Convinced that I was the best, I volunteered to be president. Looking back, it was an incredibly reckless move, and I'm amazed that they allowed me to do so. I ran au Financial Services for just under six years after its founding, and once it was on track, I passed the baton to my successor. I then served as president of au Kabucom Securities, and have continued to serve in that role to this day. When I graduated, I never expected to become president of a financial company, so it was truly fate.

About the Founding of au Jibun Bank

au Jibun Bank is undoubtedly the first online bank in Japan to not only offer low fees, but also to be based on the concept of a bank that can be carried in the palm of your hand. Looking back, I think it was a visionary idea to be pioneering, even back in the days of flip phones, before iPhones and smartphones became widespread. I also think that using au shops as advertising bases gave it an overwhelming advantage over other online banks in terms of acquiring accounts.

The appeal of au Jibun Bank

I think the greatest appeal of au Jibun Bank is that it has pioneered the unprecedented provision of "a bank in the palm of your hand." Another attractive feature is that it has a strong backbone in KDDI and MUFG, and has group companies under the au Financial Group that provide a variety of financial services. Therefore, users can enjoy a variety of benefits by using it in combination with other services.

■The president's job is to set the direction and create the environment

Companies go through stages of growth. In the founding phase, the president pursues what he envisions and wants to do, and employees bring it to life. Once the business has scaled, the next stage is when not only the president but also the employees pool their ideas and strengths to explore new growth trajectories. I believe that au Jibun Bank is currently at that stage. At this stage, I believe the most important role of a president is to determine the direction the company should take and create an environment where employees can produce output comfortably.

■We want to work with people who can empathize with the company's purpose and act on it.

No matter how talented you are, there is only so much you can do alone. So I don't think it's great to do everything by yourself. In business, too, we are now in an era where companies with different specialties can be skillfully combined to create one great service.
In times like these, we want to work with people who can resonate with the company's purpose and act accordingly. In other words, we want to work with people who share the same aspirations, can synchronize their abilities with the purpose, and can act independently.

■Message to university students

Clarify early on what makes you happy and work hard towards it.
My idea of ​​"happiness" was enriching people's lives, and I couldn't be happier to have been able to take the initiative and make it my job to make that happen. I believe I'm in the position I am in today because I unwaveringly pursued my own "happiness." I hope that you too will find what makes you feel "happy" and work towards making it a reality.

Interviewed by Student Newspaper Online on October 19, 2022 by Yoshiyuki Okazaki, 10th year student at Kawamura Gakuen Women's University