About Kabutaro & Friends
On Kabutaro & Friends, I share the basics of stock trading together with my own trading record.
I hope it helps anyone who is about to start investing in stocks.
Blog rankings
This site takes part in two Japanese blog rankings, Ninki Blog Ranking and Nihon Blog Mura. A click on the banners below keeps me motivated.
Kabutaro's story
I am 49 years old (as of October 2026) and work for a foreign-owned company.
I have been investing since June 20, 2007, for 19 years and 4 months now. My portfolio is about ¥72 million.
Every day I work hard to support my wife, a full-time homemaker, and our two daughters (15 and 12).
I started investing in 2007 with money I received when the company I worked for went public.
I began just as the market turned down after the Koizumi cabinet stepped down, and with no trading knowledge and no drive to learn, I kept losing.
Then came the Lehman shock and the Great East Japan Earthquake, one blow after another.
In 2013, just as I was thinking of quitting, I rebuilt my trading style from scratch as Abenomics began, and made a miraculous comeback.
The COVID-19 crash in 2020 cut my assets, but the pandemic bubble brought them back, and they have been growing little by little since.
My assets have kept growing through the 2025 "Sanaenomics" rally as well.
My trading setup
These are the brokers I use now.
| Broker | How I use it |
|---|---|
| Rakuten Securities | My main account since 2007. I have accounts at several brokers, and this one is the easiest to use. |
| SBI Securities | A sub-account since 2016. My NISA (tax-free) account is here, so lately I use it about as often as Rakuten. My wife and both daughters have accounts here too. |
| Daiwa Securities | A sub-account since 2016, opened for IPO lotteries. My wife has an account here too. |
| SMBC Nikko Securities | A sub-account since 2016, opened for IPO lotteries. |
| Mizuho Securities | A sub-account since 2016, opened for IPO lotteries. My wife has an account here too. |
| Nomura Securities | A sub-account since 2016, opened for IPO lotteries. My wife has an account here too. |
| Monex Securities | A sub-account since 2016, opened for IPO lotteries. Currently dormant. |
Milestones
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Sep 2026 (age 49) | My dividend income for one year passed ¥500,000. |
| Sep 2026 (age 49) | My stock portfolio passed ¥70 million, 19 years after I started investing. |
| Jul 2026 (age 48) | Total dividends received passed ¥2 million. |
| Jun 2026 (age 48) | My stock portfolio passed ¥60 million, 19 years after I started investing. |
| Jan 2026 (age 48) | My stock portfolio passed ¥50 million, 18 years after I started investing. |
| Dec 2025 (age 48) | My financial assets passed ¥150 million. |
| Dec 2025 (age 48) | My annual income reached ¥40 million. |
| Sep 2025 (age 48) | My stock portfolio passed ¥45 million, 18 years after I started investing. |
| Jul 2025 (age 47) | My stock portfolio passed ¥40 million, 18 years after I started investing. |
| Jul 2025 (age 47) | My total profit from IPO investing passed ¥1.5 million. |
| Jul 2025 (age 47) | Total dividends received passed ¥1.5 million. |
| Dec 2024 (age 47) | My financial assets passed ¥100 million (joining the "wealthy" class). |
| Dec 2024 (age 47) | My total career earnings passed ¥250 million. |
| Dec 2024 (age 47) | My annual income reached ¥30 million. |
| Jun 2024 (age 46) | Total income from stock lending passed ¥500,000. |
| May 2024 (age 46) | My stock portfolio passed ¥35 million, 16 years after I started investing. |
| Mar 2024 (age 46) | My total profit from IPO investing passed ¥1 million. |
| Dec 2023 (age 46) | My total career earnings passed ¥200 million. |
| Dec 2023 (age 46) | My annual income reached ¥20 million. |
| Sep 2023 (age 46) | Total dividends received passed ¥1 million. |
| Mar 2023 (age 45) | My stock portfolio passed ¥30 million, 15 years after I started investing. |
| Sep 2022 (age 45) | For the first time, I won an IPO allocation through a broker other than the lead underwriter: Japanias (9558). |
| Jun 2022 (age 44) | My stock portfolio passed ¥25 million, 13 years after I started investing. |
| Dec 2021 (age 44) | My financial assets passed ¥50 million. |
| Jun 2021 (age 43) | Total dividends received passed ¥500,000. |
| Mar 2021 (age 43) | Stock lending interest topped ¥10,000 in a single month for the first time. |
| Mar 2021 (age 43) | My total profit from IPO investing passed ¥500,000. |
| Jan 2021 (age 43) | My stock portfolio passed ¥20 million, 13 years after I started investing. |
| Dec 2020 (age 43) | My total career earnings passed ¥150 million. |
| Dec 2020 (age 43) | My annual income reached ¥15 million. |
| Sep 2020 (age 43) | Total income from stock lending passed ¥200,000. |
| Nov 2019 (age 42) | Total dividends received passed ¥300,000. |
| Jun 2017 (age 39) | My stock portfolio passed ¥15 million, 10 years after I started investing. |
| Jun 2017 (age 39) | Ten full years since I started investing in stocks. |
| Apr 2017 (age 39) | Total income from stock lending passed ¥50,000. |
| Dec 2016 (age 39) | My total career earnings passed ¥100 million. |
| Aug 2016 (age 39) | Total dividends received passed ¥150,000. |
| Jul 2016 (age 38) | Won an IPO allocation for the first time: LINE (3938). |
| Jun 2016 (age 38) | Interviewed by the Japanese investment magazine Diamond ZAi for the first time. |
| Jun 2016 (age 38) | Became a FISCO Social Reporter. |
| Dec 2014 (age 37) | My annual income reached ¥10 million. |
| Nov 2014 (age 37) | My stock portfolio passed ¥10 million, about 7 years after I started investing. |
| Mar 2013 (age 34) | My fifth turning point: the bankrupt company was acquired, and we became part of the buyer's group. |
| Feb 2012 (age 34) | My fourth turning point: my company went bankrupt. |
| Dec 2010 (age 33) | My total career earnings passed ¥50 million. |
| Mar 2008 (age 30) | My third turning point: the job change did not work out, so I changed jobs again. |
| Oct 2007 (age 30) | My second turning point: I moved to a competitor in the same industry. |
| Jun 2007 (age 29) | Started investing with ¥1.2 million I received when my employer went public. |
| Dec 2006 (age 29) | My annual income reached ¥5 million. |
| Oct 2003 (age 26) | My first turning point. That decision shaped the rest of my life, in a good way. |
| Apr 2000 (age 22) | Started my working life. |
Site updates
| Date | Update |
|---|---|
| Sep 23, 2026 | Published a list of shareholder benefits for all stocks, with the latest benefit announcements. Shareholder Benefits for All Stocks (Japanese) |
| Sep 23, 2026 | Renewed the trading by investor type page (foreign investors and individuals) with charts. Trading by Investor Type (Japanese) |
| Sep 20, 2026 | Published the Japanese stocks top 50 gainers. Japanese Stocks: Top 50 Gainers (Japanese) |
| Sep 20, 2026 | Published the Japanese stocks top 50 losers. Japanese Stocks: Top 50 Losers (Japanese) |
| Sep 19, 2026 | Added stock prices, timely disclosures and lists by sector to the message board. Japanese Stock Message Board (Japanese) |
| Sep 15, 2026 | Published English and Chinese versions of the Economic Blog and the Japanese, US and Chinese stock blogs. Kabutaro & Friends (English) |
| Sep 12, 2026 | Published the Chinese stock dividend ranking. Chinese Stocks: Undervalued High-Dividend Screening Top 50 (Japanese) |
| Sep 12, 2026 | Published the US stock dividend ranking. US Stocks: Undervalued High-Dividend Screening Top 50 (Japanese) |
| Sep 12, 2026 | Published the Chinese stock message board. Chinese Stock Message Board (Japanese) |
| Sep 12, 2026 | Published Chinese stock disclosures. Chinese Stock Disclosures (Japanese) |
| Sep 12, 2026 | Published the US stock message board. US Stock Message Board (Japanese) |
| Sep 10, 2026 | Published US stock disclosures (SEC filings). US Stock Disclosures (Japanese) |
| Sep 7, 2026 | Published the Japanese stock message board. Japanese Stock Message Board (Japanese) |
| Sep 6, 2026 | Published a ranking of low-cost, high-dividend index funds. Low-Cost High-Dividend Index Funds by Distribution Yield (Japanese) |
| Sep 4, 2026 | Published a ten-bagger candidate screener. Ten-Bagger Candidate Screening (Japanese) |
| Aug 19, 2026 | Published Japanese timely disclosures. Japanese Timely Disclosures (TDnet) (Japanese) |
| Aug 18, 2026 | Published a gold price chart. Gold Chart (Japanese) |
| Aug 17, 2026 | Published a euro/yen chart. EUR/JPY Chart (Japanese) |
| Aug 16, 2026 | Published a dollar/yen chart. USD/JPY Chart (Japanese) |
| Aug 15, 2026 | Published a NASDAQ chart. NASDAQ Chart (Japanese) |
| Aug 15, 2026 | Published a Dow Jones chart. Dow Jones Chart (Japanese) |
| Aug 14, 2026 | Published a J-REIT ranking. J-REIT Distribution Yield Ranking (Japanese) |
| Aug 14, 2026 | Published the Japanese stock dividend ranking. Curated Japanese Dividend Ranking |
| Aug 13, 2026 | Published a TSE Growth Market 250 chart. Growth 250 Chart (Japanese) |
| Aug 13, 2026 | Published a Nikkei 225 chart. Nikkei 225 Chart (Japanese) |
| Aug 1, 2026 | Started the US stock blog. US Stock of the Day |
| Aug 1, 2026 | Started the Chinese stock blog. China Stock of the Day |
| Aug 1, 2026 | Started the Japanese stock blog. Japan Stock of the Day |
| Apr 14, 2026 | Started the Economic Blog. Japan Market Daily |
| Dec 28, 2025 | Revised the Monologue page with Copilot: bug fixes and SEO. Monologue (Japanese) |
| Dec 26, 2025 | Revised the top page with Copilot: bug fixes and SEO. IPO (Japanese) |
| Dec 19, 2025 | Published the FUNDINNO (equity crowdfunding) page. FUNDINNO (Japanese) |
| Dec 6, 2025 | Published the asset history page. Asset History (Japanese) |
| Nov 22, 2025 | Finished renewing the stock portfolio history page. Stock Portfolio History (Japanese) |
| Nov 19, 2025 | Finished renewing the Monologue page. Monologue (Japanese) |
| Nov 17, 2025 | Finished renewing the stock lending history page. Stock Lending Results (Japanese) |
| Nov 15, 2025 | Finished renewing the trade history page. Trade History (Japanese) |
| Nov 13, 2025 | Ten years since the website was renewed. Time flies. |
| Oct 12, 2025 | Finished renewing the dividend history page. Dividend History (Japanese) |
| Sep 30, 2025 | Finished renewing the monthly results page. Monthly Results (Japanese) |
| Sep 21, 2025 | Finished renewing the annual results page. Annual Results (Japanese) |
| Sep 20, 2025 | Finished renewing the IPO page. IPO (Japanese) |
| Aug 16, 2025 | Renewed the website again, starting with the top page and the IPO page. Going with the times, I am doing the work with Copilot. Copilot is excellent. |
| Nov 13, 2015 | Renewed the website. |