December 2025: Japan Tobacco completes the transfer of its pharmaceutical business to Shionogi
Japan Tobacco (JT) completed the transfer of its pharmaceutical business to the Japanese pharmaceutical firm, Shionogi via a simplified absorption-type company split – a process first announced in May 2025 and updated in September 2025. As part of the transaction, Shionogi also took over the shares of Akros Pharma, making it a subsidiary. The move marks a significant expansion of Shionogi’s business footprint by absorbing JT’s pharmaceutical segment – a deal that had been planned and executed through formal agreements over several months.
On May 7, 2025, JT agreed to transfer its pharmaceutical business to Shionogi via a simplified absorption-type split for a consideration of ¥5,397 million (US$37.5 million) plus an adjustment amount. In addition, Shionogi paid US$24 million to JT for the Akros Pharma shares. As a result of the transaction, JT indicated that its consolidated “profit attributable to owners of the parent” for fiscal year 2025 is expected to decrease by about ¥6,000 million (US$42 million). Moreover, the pharmaceutical business (including Torii Pharmaceutical) will be classified as a “discontinued operation” from the third quarter of FY2025, meaning that the related results will be reported separately from JT’s continuing operations.
November 2025: Japan Tobacco announces new executive appointments
Japan Tobacco (JT) announces resolutions from the Board of Directors concerning a list of new and revised executive appointments. Most notably, Takehiko Tsutsui (Executive Vice President, JTI) will assume the office of President, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) effective from January 1, 2026, replacing Masamichi Terabatake. Shigeaki Okamoto (currently, Deputy Chairman of the Board) will take over the Chairman of the Board position, replacing Mutsuo Iwai. The appointments are subject to the ratification at the 41st Annual General Meeting of Shareholders, scheduled for March 25, 2026, and approval at the Board of Directors’ meeting, scheduled subsequently. JT stated that the purpose of the change is to drive sustainable profit growth and increase the corporate value.
May 2025: Japan Tobacco may manufacture Ploom devices in the US
Japan Tobacco (JT) is open to manufacturing Ploom heated tobacco devices in the United States due to the new tariff policies1. JT plans to launch Ploom in the United States through a joint venture with Altria (- possibly in 2027). Tobacco sticks – used with Ploom devices – will anyway be manufatured in the U.S. Altria and JT will jointly submit a premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) in the next months, seeking authorization from the FDA to market Ploom in the U.S.
Ploom devices are mostly manufactured in Indonesia, with components coming from other Asian countries. JT states that there might be a possibility to consider assembly in the U.S once Ploom reaches a meaningful sales volume there. Until then, JT may consider other locations with lower tariff rates. Currently, a 32% tariff on Indonesian imports to the U.S. is on pause for 90 days. JT also sells Logic vapes in the U.S.: Logic devices are produced in China, which is currently subject to a 30% tariff. However, the U.S. sales of Logic are relatively small and the impact of tariffs is very marginal.
May 2025: Japan Tobacco acquires a significant controlling stake in independent vape company, Flavour Warehouse
Japan Tobacco International (JTI) acquired a majority stake in the independent vape company, Flavour Warehouse. With this acquisition, JTI aims to increase its presence in the growing vape category. Flavour Warehouse, based in Lancashire, England, is established in 2013 and is one of the largest e-liquid companies in Europe. The Company employs around 100 people and produces and distributes its own brands, including Vampire Vape, as well as white-label products for other brands. In recent years, Flavour Warehousehas rapidly expanded in Europe by acquiring e-liquid manufacturers Total Vapour and Premier Vaping in 2019 and 2020, respectively. In 2021, the Company further expanded its presence by acquiring Trulo GmbH based in Germany and Vapouriz in the U.K. Flavour Warehouse currently has distribution centers in England, Ireland, and Germany. Through franchising, distributors, and retail networks, its products are now available in over 80 countries worldwide. Additionally, the company operates the e-commerce platform, www.vapestore.co.uk, and several VapeStore brand stores.
October 2024: Japan Tobacco sees plenty of headroom for growth in the cigarette category
The Japan Tobacco (JT) CFO considers cigarettes as a stable driver of growth, despite declining sales volume and other headwinds, such as stricter regulations, tougher competition and geopolitical risks2. JT expects 60% or more of its revenue to come from cigarettes even in 2035. This is in contrast to both PMI and BAT. The former aims to have two thirds of its revenue from smoke-free products in 2030 and the latter aims to have 50% of its revenue from non-combustibles by 2035. JT believes cigarette prices can still be hiked enough to make up for the decrease in sales volume while maintaining a certain amount of market share and offering lower-priced products.
Subsequent of the acquisition of Vector, the fourth-largest cigarette company in the U.S., for US$2.4billion, the Group is in pursuit of new acquisition deals. Doubling down on the cigarette market, JT expects the Vector acquisition to be earnings accretive (i.e. improving JT’s earnings per share) as of 2025. Vector acquisition will both boost JT’s US market to 8% from 2.3% and strengthen its distribution network. JT financed the acquisition through a bridge loan, which will eventually be refinanced into long-term bonds with fixed interest rate.
JT sees acquisitions as an extremely important enabler of continued growth and is searching for deals that can help its tobacco products reach new markets and grow. Moreover, JT considers investing in startups in the domain of electronics when it comes to the heated tobacco products.
JT puts dividends at the center of profit returns to shareholders and believes that 75% payout ratio allows JT to finance the future business growth while remaining competitive in the stock market.
May 2024: Japan Tobacco doubles down on heated tobacco
Japan Tobacco (JT) is doubling down on its heated tobacco investment. The President of JT revealed in an interview that the Group will invest ¥450Bn ($2.9Bn) in heated tobacco products over the three-year period from 2024 to 2026. JT aims to expand into the Middle East & Africa, increasing the number of markets where Ploom is sold to around 45 by 2026 (i.e. more than three times the number at the end of 2023). Recall that, in 2023, JT announced its plan to invest ¥300Bn in heated tobacco products over the three-year period from 2023 to 2025.
May 2024: Japan Tobacco will relocate its US headquarters from Teaneck, New Jersey to Raleigh, North Carolina
Japan Tobacco International (JTI) plans to relocate its US headquarters from Teaneck, New Jersey to Raleigh, North Carolina, bringing more than 100 new jobs to the city. JTI’s new office will open later in 2024 at Kane Realty’s One North Hills Tower at North Hills in Midtown. JTI Leaf Services already contracts with hundreds of tobacco farms in North Carolina and has a large purchasing center in Wilson.
JTI sells Winston, Camel, Mevius and LD in the international markets and the LD brand in the U.S. The Geneva, Switzerland-based JTI was formed in 1999 when Tokyo-based Japan Tobacco acquired the non-US operations of Winston-Salem-based RJ Reynolds. Recall that Reynolds American, now part of BAT group, is still located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
JTI follows other Japanese companies, such as Ricoh and Fujifilm, to set up operations in North Carolina – highlighting the increasing business ties between Japan and the US State.
May 2023: Japan Tobacco – 2023 Investor Day
Key Highlights3
– JT aims to maximize the top-line and ROI in combustibles to invest in RRPs (with priority on heated tobacco)
– JT realizes “where the money is” – almost a decade after PMI
JT projects heated tobacco to reach 16% of the industry volume and 22% of the industry net revenue in 2035 (bigger than e-vapor & oral tobacco combined)
In this period [2022-35], JT expects heated tobacco to generate $33Bn additional revenue vs. $17Bn by the combustibles and $15Bn by e-vapor and oral tobacco combined (i.e. HTP to generate more than half of the additional industry revenue in the long-term)
– JT expects HnB to double from 2002 to 2008, while JT HnB volume to grow to >6x (leading to mid-teens SoS in key markets, including Japan and Italy)
– JT will invest ¥300+Bn ($2.2Bn) in RRPs in the 2023-25 period – two thirds of which will be on commercialization, mainly to support HnB geographical expansion and share gains
– RRP break-even in 2028; HnB unit revenue: 1.5x cigarettes, HnB unit gross margin: 1.6x cigarettes
Ploom X Update
– Significant improvement in consumer metrics
– In 4 market (Japan, Italy, UK, Lithuania). 10 more markets by the end of 2023. 14 markets next year
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