Kaeru Inc.Co
Tokyo, JP · 2 known investors
KAERU develops financial services aimed at elderly people in Japan's aging society, offering a payment/money service (KAERU) designed to help seniors, including those with declining cognitive ability, continue to shop safely. The company focuses on accessible, safe financial tools for the senior market in Japan.
Also known as KAERU · KAERU Inc. · KAERU株式会社
Founders & leadership
Investors · 2
Company profile
researched Aug 2026KAERU 株式会社 is a Tokyo-based company that provides a "welfare-type" cashless payment service combining a rechargeable prepaid card with smartphone and PC applications. The service is designed for people who have difficulty managing money — including those with dementia or disabilities — so they can continue shopping for themselves while being monitored and supported by family members or care staff.
The product line is organized into three offerings: a consumer version for watching over a family member or close contact, a version for nursing-care and disability welfare facilities aimed at eliminating cash deposits held on behalf of residents, and a version for social welfare councils and legal guardians to support money management for people living alone. Core capabilities include prepaid-only spending limited to the amount charged, configurable daily and weekly usage caps, acceptance at merchants that take card payments through a Mastercard partnership, automatic real-time recording of transaction time, place and amount in the app with per-transaction notifications, and support for proxy shopping by care helpers or family members.
Business model
The company issues a charge-based prepaid card paired with an app used by the cardholder and by monitoring family members, facilities or guardians, sold both to individual consumers and to institutional buyers such as nursing-care and disability welfare facilities, social welfare councils and guardians. The card runs on a Mastercard partnership for merchant acceptance.
Traction
Published customer case studies cover residential disability and nursing-care facilities that report eliminating cash-on-delivery handling, reducing shopping-proxy workloads and approval paperwork, and cutting monthly settlement effort, with one operator expanding to affiliated facilities. In July 2026 the company announced a partnership with the tocotoco group home franchise addressing 400 corporations and 1,200 facilities, and raised capital via a third-party allotment from Akita Bank's Akigin NEXT Fund.
Latest developments
In July 2026 KAERU announced a business partnership with the tocotoco disability group home franchise (2026-07-01), selection for the nationwide startup track of Okinawa Prefecture's Boost Up OKINAWA 2026 program (2026-07-03), and a third-party allotment capital increase subscribed by the Akigin NEXT Fund run by Akigin Capital Partners of the Akita Bank group (2026-07-22), which was covered by Nihon Keizai Shimbun on 2026-07-27.
▸Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market, geography
Market position
The service combines consumer prepaid payments with supervision features built for the welfare context: spending is capped to the charged balance with additional daily and weekly limits, every transaction generates a real-time notification and log for a remote supporter, the card works at ordinary Mastercard-accepting merchants such as convenience stores, supermarkets, drugstores and restaurants, and proxy purchases by helpers are explicitly supported so facilities can avoid holding, advancing and bookkeeping cash for residents.
Technology
A rechargeable prepaid card issued in partnership with Mastercard, linked to smartphone and web applications that enforce prepaid balance limits and daily/weekly spending caps, automatically log each transaction's time, merchant and amount, and push notifications to supporters at the moment of payment. The system also accommodates proxy use, where a helper or family member shops on the cardholder's behalf.
Go-to-market
KAERU sells directly to individuals and through institutional channels in the welfare sector, publishing adoption case studies from facilities such as Hakushu Izumi-no-Ie (Shiawase-kai), Ai-no-Hamazono (Jiaikai) and Luida Maeyama (Mahal Inc.). It also uses franchise partnerships for distribution, as with the tocotoco disability group home franchise, where the service is to be standard in newly opened homes and rolled out progressively to existing ones, and participates in public startup support programs such as Boost Up OKINAWA 2026.
Elderly people and people with dementia or disabilities who need support with money management; their families and remote caregivers; nursing-care and disability welfare facilities, including residential facilities and group homes; social welfare councils and legal guardians supporting people living alone.
Geography
Japan, with headquarters in Tokyo; institutional customers and partners across the country, and involvement in regional programs in Akita and Okinawa.
Compiled by commissioned research from 1 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.
Timeline · 3
launches, deals, and filingsKAERU carried out a third-party allotment capital increase (第三者割当増資) with the Akigin NEXT Fund, operated by Akigin Capital Partners of the Akita Bank group, as the subscriber. The investment was subsequently covered by Nihon Keizai Shimbun on 2026-07-27 in the context of spreading cashless payments among elderly people and addressing regional issues.
KAERU was selected for the nationwide startup track of Boost Up OKINAWA 2026, a startup support program hosted by Okinawa Prefecture and operated by eiicon Inc.
KAERU announced a business partnership with tocotoco, described as one of Japan's largest franchises of group homes for people with disabilities, covering 400 corporations and 1,200 facilities nationwide. The plan calls for standard adoption in newly opened homes and phased rollout to existing homes to make residents' money management cashless.
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
▸Research sources · 1
primary sources listed
- Kaeru Inc.Cokaeru-inc.co.jp · web
1 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does Kaeru Inc.Co do?
- KAERU offers a Mastercard prepaid card with family/supporter monitoring features for people who need help managing money.
- Who founded Kaeru Inc.Co?
- Kaeru Inc.Co was founded by Tomohiro Okada.
- Who are Kaeru Inc.Co's investors?
- Kaeru Inc.Co's investors include Sony Ventures Corporation, W Inc..
- Where is Kaeru Inc.Co headquartered?
- Kaeru Inc.Co is headquartered in Tokyo, JP.