FNG has learned that longtime IG Group (LON:IGG) executive Tomoharu Furuichi has stepped down from his role at the company.

Tomoharu Furuichi had been with IG since 2019, serving as CEO of IG Japan, out of Tokyo. Holding an MBA from the University of Chicago and a law degree from the University of Tokyo, Tomoharu previously worked at luxury brands companies Gilt Group and Samantha Thavasa. He has also worked at consulting firm AlixPartners, and McKinsey.

In its latest annual filing, IG reports holding £234.1 million of segregated client funds for customers of the Group’s Japanese subsidiary, IG Securities Limited.

This marks the second major Asia region management change for London based IG in recent months. IG hired former Moomoo CEO Gavin Chia as CEO of IG Singapore late last year, with the company’s former Head of Singapore, Sebastian Jones, departing.

Tomoharu posted the following note on LinkedIn regarding his departure from IG.

Dear connections,

I resigned from Representative Director/CEO role at IG Japan, at the end of January, after almost seven years of fantastic journey.

It was not straightforward. Ups and downs, cliffs and tunnels. But it was quite exciting and rewarding.

IG Japan has become several times bigger than it used to be. It has become the largest foreign-branded retail broker in Japan, despite operating in a smaller segment, OTC derivatives. I have given all I could, and time has come for a new leader.

I will not try to list all people I am grateful for. It would be too long of a list, and I don’t want to miss anyone. Just special thanks to my four supervisors – Simon Crimp, Kevin Algeo, Bridget Messer and Matt Macklin, as well as three global CEOs I worked with – June Yee Felix, Charlie Rozes and Breon Corcoran, and of course, all people in my favorite “Team Japan”.

In the last 36 years, I have enjoyed working for six organizations – two consulting firms (McKinsey, AlixPartners), two Japanese public companies (HR services and fashion retail), and two foreign brands in Japan (GILT, an online fashion outlet, and IG). With all of the four companies, outside consulting, I was fortunate to help the “phase changes” happen, and to help them exceed the record top lines and bottom lines at that time, as a CEO/exec officer/director.  It was thanks to my fabulous colleagues and the great people I got help from, for whom I am so grateful.

Going forward – I was appointed as a non-executive director at a Japanese HR tech company, Kaonavi, last October. It is a new challenge for me – a part-time job, a non-operational role, rather than leading from the front. I am excited to contribute in a new way, and would highly appreciate your continued guidance and help.

Thank you for reading this long note till the end. I wish you will stay healthy and enjoy your life every single day. I look forward to hearing your stories in the next opportunity.

All the best,

Tomoharu Furuichi