Sustainability
Sustainability
CEO Message
Digital Garage’s purpose is “Designing ‘New Context’ for a sustainable society with technology.”
Sustainability initiatives are expected to become more important considering the evolution of technology and the values of global society in response to the emergence of new social issues. The DG Group will enhance its sustainability management by incorporating “Environment,” “Social,” and “Governance” perspectives.
Since our founding, we have supported the growth of various sectors of the Japanese Internet, including payments, digital media, advertising, and startup incubation. We believe that to create a better society, it is crucial to collaborate not only with our employees who are willing to “contribute to society” and with our shareholders and investors but also with our stakeholders, including our investment partners, alliance partners, business partners, and local communities.
As a Japanese technology company, we will continue to create the context for the next generation, always considering the global-scale changes and challenges we currently face, such as global warming, increasing natural disasters, and conflicts among nations and ethnic groups.
- Representative Director, President Executive Officer and Group CEO
- Kaoru Hayashi
Our Philosophy
Sustainability Policy
Designing “New Context” for a sustainable society with technology
※The Group’s Sustainability Policy is synonymous with and equal to the Group’s Purpose, “Designing ‘New Context’ for a sustainable society with technology” and are, therefore, perfectly aligned.
In the digital field where major changes are frequently occurring, our Group has always been committed to the “First Penguin Spirit,” which is meant to encourage us to be the first to take on risky challenges with courage and strong determination. Our slogan, “Think for yourself and question authority” also pushes us to be free, independent thinkers that are not bound by conventional wisdom but are able to think outside the box. Timothy Leary’s famous quote, “Think for yourself and question authority” has been our corporate motto since our founding, and we aim to stay true to this message in our continued efforts to innovate and implement new technologies for a more sustainable and equitable society.
Based on these corporate philosophies, as well as the powerful image of “Earthshot” (aka “Blue Marble”) in which the earth as seen from space amplifies a borderless world and underscores our interdependence as a species within a shared ecosystem, our Group will continue to work towards solving the many problems that we face in realizing a more equitable and prosperous society for all. Working together with our various stakeholders, our Group will engage to promote our Sustainable Management with the aim of creating an ecosystem for a sustainable society while further increasing our corporate value.
Sustainability Promotion System
The DG Group has established a governance structure that balances highly effective supervision with agile business execution for sustainability management. The Sustainability Committee, which serves as the core of business execution, is supervised by the President Executive Officer, chaired by the Head of the Corporate Division, and consists of business division heads and administrative division heads across the group who are appropriately selected for accelerating the group-wide initiatives. This committee promotes and monitors progress on sustainability policies and materiality initiatives, manages progress on materiality KPIs, and responds to climate change matters, while regularly presenting and reporting to the Management Committee and the Board of Directors (meeting at least twice per year). Based on reports from this committee, the Board of Directors oversees the Group’s overall sustainability activities, including policies, strategies, and the status of initiatives on materiality.
In addition, outside directors are involved as advisors based on their specialized knowledge, incorporating objective perspectives to enhance the effectiveness of governance. The Sustainability Management Office serves as the secretariat for this committee, promoting group-wide initiatives in cooperation with related departments. Furthermore, this committee and the Risk Management Committee mutually collaborate, establishing a system to incorporate the decisions deliberated by the Management Committee and Board of Directors in formulating management strategy, risk management, and risk assessment.
Materiality of Digital Garage Group
Materiality Identification Process
Using international frameworks and various guidelines as a starting point for understanding social issues, the Group analyzed business opportunities and risks for the Group, and then organized and identified key issues through dialogue with stakeholders.
Step
01
- Identification and Extraction of Social Issues
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- Create a comprehensive long list of social issues by referring to international frameworks and guidelines on sustainability such as the Global Reporting Initiative, ISO26000, SASB, etc.
Step
02
- Evaluate the level of importance to our group
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- Analyze and evaluate each item from both risk and opportunity perspectives based on the basic policies of the Purpose as well as the Medium-Term Management Plan (FY3/2024-FY3/2028).
- The items of high importance to our group were extracted from a backcasting perspective based on our future vision.
Step
03
- Understanding the level of importance to our various stakeholders
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- Evaluation based on interviews with internal and external directors and employees (management/career/recent hires).
- Evaluation based on interviews with shareholders, business partners, local governments, and experts.
Step
04
- Organize priority social issues
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- Identify high-priority social issues based on Step1-3.
Step
05
- Validity assessment and identification of materiality
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- Discuss the identified materiality at the Sustainability Committee.
- Finalize the materiality after deliberation and approval by the Board of Directors.
Materiality
| Key Areas | materiality | |
|---|---|---|
| Creating a sustainable ecosystem through technology | Pursue new technologies for a better future | The Group’s strength is that it has always pursued new technologies and implemented them in society while capturing their essence, and it has and will continue to explore new technologies without being bound by existing systems and concepts. |
| Creating a prosperous society through the utilization and application of fintech |
The widespread use of fintech in society, which is easy for everyone to use, will contribute not only to the economy but also to the realization of a prosperous society by stimulating the flow of funds, improving accessibility and inclusiveness, and reducing environmental impact. | |
| Business co-creation efforts to contribute to a sustainable society | The company will continue to work with various partners to co-create new businesses, believing that creating sustainable businesses together with startups and business partners will contribute not only to the growth of the Group’s business but also to the realization of a sustainable society. | |
| Creating an environment in which all employees can thrive |
Creating a system which allows an inclusive and diverse workforce to thrive | The Group respects the diversity of each and every employee, and believes that creating a positive and rewarding work environment and systems will help the Group meet the diverse needs and challenges of society, and will continue to promote initiatives for human resources. |
| Developing Human Resources Management initiatives that can pave the way to the future | The Group believes that fostering employees who are brave enough to take on the challenges of a changing social environment while leveraging their individual strengths will enable these employees to build independent careers and enrich their own lives. The Group also believes that this will lead to the growth of the Group. | |
| Building Trust to move forward Together with Society |
Promote responsible corporate activities | As a company active in society and the economy, the Group will promote its business activities with a commitment to sound and transparent governance, compliance with laws and regulations, and consideration for the local and global environment. |
| Co-existing in harmony with society while respecting all human rights. | The Group will respect the human rights of all people involved in the Group and value chain, and strive to coexist in harmony with society. | |
| Stable operation of systems that support society |
As a group that operates businesses that serve as critical infrastructure for society, it is the Group’s responsibility to provide and operate safe and secure systems without interruption. The Group will continue to strive to improve the robustness and safety of its systems in response to the characteristics of the business and changes in society. | |
Materiality KPIs and Impact Stories
The DG Group has set KPIs for each of the eight materiality items identified across three key areas. Each responsible department has developed “Impact Stories” that visualize the impact on society and business, while keeping in mind the value created (outcomes), and set KPIs for each materiality. Going forward, the Group will continuously operate the PDCA cycle using KPIs as indicators to enhance the effectiveness of its sustainability management.
【Business】 Creating a sustainable ecosystem through technology
| Key Areas | Materiality KPI | Achievement Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Pursue new technologies for a better future | ・Number of products & services positively impacting society | Annually |
| Creating a prosperous society through the utilization and application of fintech |
・Payment transaction volume ・Number of payment transactions |
Annually |
| Business co-creation efforts to contribute to a sustainable society | Invest in startups related to ESG ・Direct 50% of funds in Open Network Lab ESG 1 Investment Limited Partnership to ESG-related startups ・20% of investment targets in the same fund to be directed towards climate change related startups |
Annually |
| Impact Story ＜Social Impact＞ | Impact Story ＜Business Impact＞ |
|---|---|
| ・Contribute to economic revitalization and market creation by providing information and commercial transaction environments that respond to diverse values. ・Contribute to mitigating climate change issues by digitizing existing social systems and further promoting energy and resource conservation. ・Foster a secure and trustworthy society through services that reduce security risks. ・Contribute to correcting inequalities caused by regional, economic, and financial disparities through improved financial and commercial transaction access via digital technology. ・Contribute to solving the social issue of serious labor shortages by providing services that promote labor-saving and productivity improvement through digitalization. ・Contribute to realizing a sustainable society by promoting innovation in social and environmental fields through investment in ESG-related startups and co-creating new businesses and industries. |
Achieve stable business growth by developing businesses that address medium- to long-term social and environmental challenges. |
【HR】 Creating an environment in which all employees can thrive
| Key Areas | Materiality KPI | Achievement Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Creating a system which allows an inclusive and diverse workforce to thrive | ・Engagement Index ‘Total Engagement’ of 4.0 points or higher ・Female leadership representation: 30％ or more |
By March 31, 2028 |
| Developing Human Resources Management initiatives that can pave the way to the future | ・Engagement Index ‘Human Resources Development Index’ improvement of +1.0 points compared to fiscal year ended March 2025 | By March 31, 2030 |
| Impact Story ＜Social Impact＞ | Impact Story ＜Business Impact＞ |
|---|---|
| Contribute to society by accelerating innovation and creating groundbreaking services. | By establishing an environment and systems where employees with diverse backgrounds can thrive, fostering employee attachment and job satisfaction, the Group promotes productivity improvement and new idea generation, leading to retention of excellent talent and enhanced recruitment capabilities. |
| Contribute to society by creating businesses that lead to mitigating social issues. | Continuous upskilling to create advanced technologies and businesses enhances both individual employee growth and overall organizational productivity and competitiveness, becoming a vital source of overall business growth. |
【Foundation】 Building Trust to move forward Together with Society
| Key Areas | Materiality KPI | Achievement Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Promote responsible corporate activities | ・Further improve governance disclosure & hold 200 or more dialogues with stakeholders annually | Annually |
| ・Compliance training for 100% of the workforce | Annually | |
| ・50% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions compared to fiscal year ended March 2022 ・Achieve carbon neutrality across the entire value chain compared to fiscal year ended March 2022 |
Fiscal Year ending March 2031 Fiscal Year ending March 2051 |
|
| Co-existing in harmony with society while respecting all human rights | ・Formulate and release DG’s Human Rights Policy ・Harassment prevention training for 100% of the workforce |
By October 2025 Annually |
| Stable operation of systems that support society |
・Cybersecurity management system coverage rate ・Security training for 100% of the workforce |
Annually |
| Impact Story ＜Social Impact＞ | Impact Story ＜Business Impact＞ |
|---|---|
| Promote sustainable economic development by correcting information asymmetry through proactive information disclosure, enhancing fairness and transparency in capital markets, and improving the quality of investor decision-making and capital market credibility. | By enhancing risk management capabilities and transparency, we gain trust from stakeholders including investors and business partners, realize stable business operations, identify business opportunities to reduce risks, and achieve long-term enhancement of corporate value. |
| Support sound and sustainable growth by revitalizing markets through fair competition. | By ensuring all employees understand fundamental compliance knowledge and behavioral guidelines, we reduce risks of legal violations and misconduct, enhance trust from investors and business partners, and achieve continuous maintenance and improvement of corporate value. |
| Contribute to realizing a sustainable society by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and suppressing the progression of global warming. | Enhance corporate value through improved corporate reputation and investor evaluation, as well as cost reduction and risk management. |
| Contribute to realizing a fair and sustainable society by fostering social diversity and a culture of coexistence. | Integrating human rights considerations into management contributes to gaining social trust, reducing risks, and improving employee engagement, thereby enhancing corporate value from multiple perspectives. |
| Provide a foundation for smooth economic activities by supporting critical social infrastructure and deliver peace of mind and safety. | By reducing risks of incidents such as information leaks and avoiding serious damage including business disruptions and loss of credibility from system troubles, we enhance customer trust and achieve management stability. |
