Earning Trust, Entering Japan: 23 ASEAN SMEs Build Cyber Readiness (ASEAN-Japan SME Cybersecurity and Cross-border Market Expansion Workshop 2026 launched)

Earning Trust, Entering Japan: 23 ASEAN SMEs Build Cyber Readiness 

The ASEAN-Japan Centre (AJC), in collaboration with the ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN-BAC), officially launched the ASEAN-Japan SME Cybersecurity and Cross-border Market Expansion Workshop 2026 on 2 October 2026 during the hybrid webinar “Building Digital Trust Capabilities for ASEAN SMEs Entering the Japan Market.” 

The pilot programme brings together 23 selected SMEs from nine ASEAN countries—Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Viet Nam—to strengthen their readiness for secure and trusted cross-border business with Japan. 

Opening the programme, Dr. Kunihiko Hirabayashi, Secretary General of AJC, highlighted that succeeding in a new market requires not only market access, but also the trust and readiness needed to build sustainable business relationships. H.E. Mr. Koji Yonetani, Ambassador of Japan to ASEAN similarly emphasized that cybersecurity and digital trust are increasingly important for businesses of all sizes as cross-border digital activity expands. 

From Digital Adoption to Digital Trust 

Mr. Rio Kiantara, Head of Research and Partnership, ASEAN-BAC, presented findings from a pilot survey on ASEAN SMEs’ digital readiness for the Japan market. The findings highlighted that while many SMEs are already actively adopting digital tools, cybersecurity, data governance, and the ability to demonstrate readiness during business due diligence remain important challenges for international expansion. 

The discussion was further developed through a keynote by Dr. Daisuke Miyamoto, Professor at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS), followed by a panel discussion bringing together perspectives from cybersecurity, digital policy, and ASEAN entrepreneurship. Dr. Miyamoto emphasized the importance of a human-centric approach to digital trust and cybersecurity, while highlighting the need for SMEs and suppliers to prepare for short and varying incident-reporting timelines across jurisdictions and to build the capacity to detect and respond quickly when incidents occur. 

Figure 4 Panel discussion and open forum 

Speakers stressed that digital trust is not simply about investing in sophisticated cybersecurity systems. For resource-constrained SMEs, practical measures such as establishing clear security responsibilities, strengthening basic cybersecurity practices, preparing incident-response procedures, managing data appropriately, and communicating transparently with business partners can help demonstrate credibility and readiness. 

The panel also highlighted the importance of relationships and trust when entering the Japanese market. Mr. Fauzi Fadillah, CEO and Founder of PLABS.ID, emphasized that consistent and transparent communication is essential for building trust with Japanese partners. The discussion also highlighted the value of beginning with smaller-scale engagements or pilots, allowing Japanese clients to build confidence in a new partner before expanding into larger contracts. 

Mr. Hayato Kiriyama, CEO and Asia Pacific Managing Director of Cyber Security Cloud, highlighted that engaging Japanese clients often involves multiple stakeholders and a thorough decision-making process. He noted that starting with a smaller-scale engagement can help SMEs demonstrate their reliability and build the confidence needed for broader collaboration. 

Beyond having competitive products and services, ASEAN SMEs need to demonstrate reliability, responsiveness, and their ability to meet the cybersecurity, data-management, and due-diligence expectations of prospective Japanese partners. Dr. Randeep Kaur, Digital & AI Policy Economist at the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), highlighted the different but complementary strengths of Japan and ASEAN and the importance of building capabilities that can meet high standards across markets. The discussion further noted that SMEs can draw on specialized partners and external expertise in areas where their internal capacity is limited. 

Regional initiatives such as the ASEAN-Japan SME Cybersecurity and Cross-border Market Expansion Workshop can support this process by helping smaller enterprises strengthen their readiness and credibility progressively as they prepare for wider cross-border engagement. 

Building Readiness for the Japan Market 

The workshop is implemented in two phases. Phase 1 combines live and self-paced learning on areas including Japan-market strategy, cybersecurity and risk management, digital infrastructure, data and AI governance, and cross-border business considerations. 

SMEs demonstrating strong readiness will have the opportunity to advance to Phase 2, featuring targeted mentoring, peer learning, networking, co-creation, and engagement with Japanese business and technical experts and potential counterparts. 

Through the programme, AJC and ASEAN-BAC aim to help ASEAN SMEs view cybersecurity and digital trust not only as compliance requirements, but as capabilities that can strengthen their competitiveness and credibility in cross-border business. 

Participating Enterprises 

The following enterprises are participating in the ASEAN-Japan SME Cybersecurity and Cross-border Market Expansion Workshop 2026: 

Note 1: The identification of participating companies in the workshop does not constitute the promotion or endorsement of the featured business.  

Note 2: Company profiles are based on information provided by participating enterprises and will be updated as additional information becomes available.