Michael Schuman, Columnist

Is Japan Too Scared to Succeed?

The country needs bold new entrepreneurs, not more easy money.

Most young Japanese still prefer joining big companies.

Photographer: Chris McGrath/Getty Images
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Of all of the scary economic data that routinely streams out of Japan, this statistic should terrify you: $800 million. That’s the total value of venture capital deals completed in Japan in 2015, according to accounting firm Ernst & Young. Compare that to $72 billion in the U.S. and $49 billion in China. Even tiny Israel managed $2.6 billion in deals.

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