This was reported in the company’s press release, as reported by Ukrinform.

The new Rakuten office opened today, January 15, in Kiev. Rakuten also announced plans to participate in the Ukrainian Diya.City initiative to develop the country’s IT sector in 2024.

Three Rakuten companies (Rakuten Viber, Rakuten Publishing and Rakuten Rewards) currently have development and marketing teams in Kiev and Odessa. It is stated that the new Kiev office will allow the local team to work together, more efficiently develop technological products and services for users around the world, and strengthen Ukraine’s reputation as an IT innovation hub.

Rakuten’s plans to open offices come after Rakuten Chairman and CEO Hiroshi Mikitani accompanied Japanese government officials on a visit to Ukraine in September 2023. Acting as a representative of Japan’s private sector, Mikitani met with Ukrainian leaders, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi and Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov.

“Rakuten has consistently supported Ukraine throughout the war, demonstrating its commitment to its people, economy, and post-war reconstruction,” the company’s press release said. The statement is included.

Rakuten, among other things, operates VEON Ltd. signed a partnership agreement with. on cooperation in rebuilding the country’s infrastructure with the help of open radio access networks (Open RAN) and digital services. Additionally, Rakuten launched the Ukraine Humanitarian Crisis Emergency Fund through its online donation platform Rakuten Clutch Special Relief Fund and organized a fundraising campaign that raised more than ¥1.3 billion to support Ukraine.

Mikitani has repeatedly shown strong personal support for Ukraine. In February 2022, he donated 1 billion yen (about $8.7 million) to the Ukrainian government for humanitarian aid. Last winter, he supported the donation and delivery of 500 generators to Ukrainian citizens through the Samurai donation initiative. By Presidential Decree, Mikitani was awarded the National Order of Merit for his and the Rakuten Group’s efforts.

As noted, Rakuten’s plans for its presence in Ukraine include additional hires in the technology sector and the appointment of a regional manager.

It is expected that one of the next steps will be the launch of the Rakuten Viber digital wallet service in Ukraine, after its successful implementation in many European countries. The service will provide new financial services to Viber users in Ukraine, where the app is installed on 98% of smartphones, including the ability to send money to and from the country using secure instant transactions.

As reported by Ukrinform, Rakuten plans to launch its own large language (LLM) AI model.

Photo: global.rakuten.com