The Era of ¥1 Million Cremations? Inside the Growing Foreign Investment in Japan’s Funeral Industry

Mounting problems

Cremation fees are so high that families can no longer afford to send their loved ones off properly. While price hikes have become a familiar topic for Japanese people, the possibility that even funerals themselves may become unaffordable could soon become a harsh reality.

In late May, news that Kosaido Holdings was considering selling its subsidiary Tokyo Hakusenkai to the U.S. investment fund Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) hit funeral industry operators hard. Tokyo Hakusenkai operates six of the seven privately run crematoriums in Tokyo’s 23 wards and holds about 70% of the cremation market in the metropolitan area, making it an industry giant.

“Immediately after the reports, Kosaido Holdings moved quickly to deny them, saying no decision has been made at this time, but reports even specified a figure of around 150 billion yen for the deal. It is highly likely that negotiations are indeed underway. In 2022, the largest shareholder of Kosaido Holdings became Mr. Yiwen Luo (63), chairman of Laox Holdings. He is known as a shrewd businessman, so attention is focused on what kind of business decision he will make,” said an economic reporter from a national newspaper.

Tokyo Hakusenkai has frequently been in the news for raising cremation fees. Until 2020, the cost was under 60,000 yen, but due to rising fuel costs and other factors, it has been raised in stages and now stands at 87,000 yen—an increase of nearly 50% over six years.

Concerns are growing that the reported sale could lead to further price increases. Mitsutoshi Torii, chairman of the Tokyo Funeral Services Cooperative, warned:

“The ‘Act on Cemeteries and Burials’ does not allow local governments to intervene in the management of private crematorium operators. In other words, if Tokyo Hakusenkai were sold to a foreign investment fund and that fund set the cremation fee at 1 million yen per body, there would legally be no way to correct it.

Some may say, ‘If the price is too high, just use cheaper public facilities,’ but it is not that simple. There are only three public or semi-public crematoriums in the 23 wards besides Tokyo Hakusenkai’s facilities. They are located in Edogawa, Ota, and Itabashi wards, far from central Tokyo, and there are none in western areas such as Suginami. Transporting the deceased over an hour after a funeral to a distant crematorium is unrealistic. Once prices are set, most Tokyo residents would have no choice but to accept them.”

There are other concerns as well.

“Including affiliated companies, Hakusenkai holds 18 patents related to cremation furnaces. If these fall into the hands of an investment fund, there is a possibility that they could demand excessive patent licensing fees in the future. They also hold a large amount of customer data, including that of members of the imperial family and other prominent figures. The handling of personal information under foreign control could also become a risk,” the same source added.

The core issue is that crematorium services in Tokyo are effectively a monopoly held by Tokyo Hakusenkai. With no alternatives, cremation fees continue to rise, and dissatisfaction among users is increasing. A veteran funeral company president in Tokyo sighed:

“We already receive complaints like, ‘In my hometown it costs only a few thousand yen—why is it so expensive here?’ In rural areas, public crematoriums are the norm, and even the highest fees are around 20,000 yen. We understand why people complain, but there is nothing we can do.”

“We’ve been calling for this for four years”

On June 3, Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike (73) and the association of Tokyo’s 23 special ward mayors submitted a request to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare seeking strengthened administrative authority over local governments. The following day, on June 4, a “Study Group on Crematoriums” composed of ward and city mayors and experts was convened for the first time.

However, Mitsutoshi Torii, quoted earlier, said that while the fact that discussions have begun is welcome, the response should have come much earlier.

“Our association has been continuously warning for the past four years that there are problems with crematorium operations. In response to Tokyo Hakusenkai introducing a fuel surcharge and implementing significant price increases, we have been urging the Tokyo Metropolitan Government to consider legal reforms that would allow intervention in cremation fees, as well as the need to build additional crematoriums.

Now that this has become a social issue, what needs to be discussed urgently is the construction of small-scale crematoriums. Even if there are no legal issues, construction in Tokyo is heavily restricted by local ordinances. If those ordinances are revised, it should be possible to proceed more quickly without involving the national government.”

How does the Tokyo Metropolitan Government view the proposals from funeral industry operators and the concerns of residents? The Metropolitan Bureau of Public Health and Medical Care responded to “FRIDAY’s” inquiry as follows:

“The special wards, which have supervisory authority (note: the wards where Tokyo Hakusenkai crematoriums are located), together with the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, submitted requests to the national government in November last year and June this year regarding legal frameworks for the management of private crematorium operations. The newly established study group will examine how administrative involvement should be structured in relation to future increases in cremation demand and the management of crematorium operations.”

On June 5, a Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly faction affiliated with the Constitutional Democratic Party submitted a written request to Governor Koike calling for the public ownership of private crematoriums. Secretary-General Yoko Takei stated, “Crematorium operations must not be turned into a financial game.”

It is too late once Japan’s funerals are taken over by foreign capital. Swift action is required.

From the June 26–July 3, 2026, combined issue of “FRIDAY”