Laurent Depus, Secretary General
Laurent Depus took up his role of Secretary General of the International Bankers Association (IBA) Japan on 1 February 2024. Laurent is a Belgian national, with 35 years of experience working in senior management roles in European, Anglo-Saxon and domestic companies. He has many years of regulatory relations with the SMBC Trust Bank Board and advocates with Japan's financial authorities.
He is an ambassador FinCity.Tokyo, contributing to key discussions on business, regulation and governance matters. From 2014, for 7-years, Laurent has served as Natixis Senior Country manager for Japan, working predominantly with foreign financial stakeholders. He is co-currently the President of the European Business Council (EBC) in Japan from January 2024. During his career, he has worked in Luxembourg, UK, Singapore, and Japan. He studied linguistics in Belgium, Spain, and the UK. He is a graduate of Institut Libre Marie Haps, University Catholique de Louvain (Belgium).
Iwao Toriumi, Senior Manager
Iwao Toriumi joined IBA Japan in May 2008 and is in charge of banking-related issues.
He previously served at the Bank of Japan for almost 20 years where he produced economic research and statistics, liaised with international financial organizations, and provided technical assistance to central banks in Asia. He was also seconded to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (as an officer responsible for macro economic policies) and the Cabinet Office (as an economist).
He holds a BA in Political Science from Waseda University and a Master’s degree in Public Policy from Harvard University.
Atsushi Hirayama, Senior Manager
Atsushi Hirayama joined IBA Japan in September 2019 and is in charge of securities and capital markets.
He previously worked at Mitsui Trust and Banking, Japan Bankers Trust and more recently Mizuho Securities Co., Ltd. where he was part of its legal department for 20 years, looking after various legal issues including cross border transactions.
He holds a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B) degree from Waseda University, and a LL.M. from New York University School of Law.
Harumi Takiguchi, Finance & Administration Manager
Harumi Takiguchi joined IBA Japan as Finance & Administration Manager in July 2021. Before joining IBA Japan, she worked for a major international corporate in an office management role and before that a major international financial institution. She has experience in accounting, planning, marketing, communications and general office management.
Eri Inada, Executive Assistant
Eri Inada is the Executive Assistant to the Secretary General, and joined IBA Japan in February 2021. She previously worked as a head of treasury and dealer support at a global financial company in Tokyo.
Kris Watanabe, Marketing and Member Relations
Kris Watanabe joined IBA Japan in October 2023 and is responsible for the seminar and webinar series, marketing and communications, including media management. He was an international real estate agent before assuming the role of marketing and member relations of IBA Japan.