DESK
株式会社日本提携支援 (NTS) is a Japan-focused M&A advisory firm founded in 2023 that helps SME owners (typically aged 50-70) organize business succession options, supports growth-oriented acquirers, and partners with local governments, leveraging a 12+ partner ecosystem across Tokyo and Osaka.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2023
- HeadquartersTokyo, Japan
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What DESK does
株式会社日本提携支援 (Nihon Teikei Shien / Japan Partnership Support, operating as NTS) is a Tokyo-headquartered M&A advisory firm founded in 2023 by Representative Director Shunsuke Ono (大野 駿介) to address Japan's SME business succession crisis. The company positions itself as a pre-intermediary advisor that helps business owners organize their options before engaging formal M&A brokers, and also serves growth-oriented acquirers and local governments facing "black-ink closures" in rural and island communities. Its four service lines are M&A New Standard (consultation for owners), M&A Acquisition Support (buyer-side growth strategy and PMI), M&A Proposal Support (referral partner channel), and Subsidy Utilization Support (subsidy application assistance for labor, capital, and succession challenges). NTS has no proprietary technology platform; its core infrastructure is a curated network of 12+ M&A support partners (including CREGIO, FORVAL, KAEDE, MAFORCE, MARO, STRIKE, NCAP, Nihon Mac Center, and omegacap) plus formal cooperation agreements with municipalities such as Murakami City (Niigata) and Nishi no Shima Town (Shimane). The firm is privately held with no disclosed institutional investors or funding rounds. Revenue is generated via M&A transaction success fees, advisory fees, and professional services for subsidy applications; no pricing is publicly disclosed. The company is sales-led, with free phone consultations (10:00-20:00 year-round, line 03-6667-0221) as the primary intake, supported by seminars, FM radio programs, press coverage, case-study publishing, and university lectures (Meiji University). An Osaka office opened June 5, 2026 to serve the Kansai region.
DESK firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- DESK
- Legal name
- 株式会社日本提携支援
- Website
- https://nihon-teikei.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2023
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- 株式会社日本提携支援 (NTS) is a Japan-focused M&A advisory firm founded in 2023 that helps SME owners (typically aged 50-70) organize business succession options, supports growth-oriented acquirers, and partners with local governments, leveraging a 12+ partner ecosystem across Tokyo and Osaka.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
DESK industry classification
Industry- Product category
- M&A Advisory Services
- NAICS
- Management Consulting Services (54161)
- SIC
- Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)
- akta.pro primary industry
- M&A Advisory (Buy-Side & Sell-Side) (BPAHAOAA)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- M&A Advisory (Buy-side/Sell-side) (BPAHADAC)
Keywords
Where DESK is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Tokyo
- HQ country
- Japan
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices2 records
Markets served
DESK business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Others
Revenue model
- M&A Advisory Services: The company earns success fees and advisory fees from M&A transactions, supporting both sellers (business owners seeking succession) and buyers (companies pursuing growth through acquisition). Services include deal sourcing, valuation support, negotiation assistance, and post-merger integration guidance.
- Professional Services: Subsidy application support services for clients facing operational challenges (labor shortages, capital investment, business succession). Provides consulting from application preparation through post-approval accompaniment.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
DESK product offering
Product offeringCore offering
株式会社日本提携支援 (NTS) is a Japan-based M&A advisory firm that helps small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) owners navigate business succession. The company positions itself as a pre-intermediary advisor, helping business owners organize their options before engaging formal M&A brokers. Services include M&A consultation (for transferors), acquisition support (for acquirers), proposal support (for referral partners), and subsidy utilization support. The firm leverages a network of 12+ M&A support partners to deliver end-to-end transaction and post-merger integration support.
Product overview
株式会社日本提携支援 (Nihon Teikei Shien / Japan Partnership Support) is an M&A advisory services firm offering a unified platform of four interconnected service offerings: M&Aニュースタンダード (consultation service for managers to organize options), M&A買収サポート (acquisition support including strategy consultation and PMI), M&A提案サポート (proposal support for referral partners), and 補助金活用サポート (subsidy utilization support for business succession and investment). The company leverages an extensive network of M&A support companies and partners to provide end-to-end support from both transferor and acquirer perspectives.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- M&A News Standard (M&Aニュースタンダード)
- M&A Acquisition Support (M&A買収サポート) Growth strategy and acquisition execution support for companies pursuing M&A as a growth lever. Includes strategy hearings, referral to M&A support companies from NTS's partner network, and support through to post-merger integration (PMI). Targeted at acquiring companies and growth-oriented enterprises.
- M&A Proposal Support (M&A提案サポート) Support service for individuals or organizations that have relationships with business owners and wish to facilitate M&A proposal introductions. Provides a structured channel for referral partners to bring succession opportunities to NTS and its partner network.
- Subsidy Utilization Support (補助金活用サポート) Support service for organizing applicable government subsidies, preparing applications, and providing post-approval accompaniment. Addresses operational challenges such as labor shortages, capital investment needs, and business succession. Targeted at SME business owners in Japan seeking public funding support.
Quantifiable outcome
- 350% YoY increase in remote island/rural area M&A consultations
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use DESK
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
DESK technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
DESK partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
14 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- 村上上市 (Murakami City)coreComprehensive cooperation agreement with Murakami City, Niigata Prefecture for regional business succession support. NTS collaborates with the city's Economic Promotion Division to hold seminars and provide succession planning assistance to local businesses facing closure risks.
- 西ノ島町 (Nishi no Shima Town)corePartnership with Nishi no Shima Town, Oki County, Shimane Prefecture for business succession and human resources solutions. Joint seminars held to address succession challenges facing island communities.
- 藤枝市 (Fujieda City)minorEngagement in Fujieda City's 'Fujikichi 88 Project' to address regional business succession challenges and local economic sustainability.
- CREGIOminorPartner M&A support company within the NTS network, providing additional deal execution capabilities and market reach.
- FORVALminorPartner M&A support company within the NTS network, contributing to the comprehensive support ecosystem for business succession services.
- KAEDEminorPartner M&A support company within the NTS network.
- MAFORCEminorPartner M&A support company within the NTS network.
- MAROminorPartner M&A support company within the NTS network.
- STRIKEminorPartner M&A support company within the NTS network.
- NCAPminorPartner organization within the NTS network.
- 日本マセセンター (Nihon Mac Center)minorPartner M&A support company within the NTS network.
- omegacapminorPartner M&A support company within the NTS network.
- 株式会社未知 (Michi Corporation)minorPartner interview subject and branding professional; collaboration on communication strategies for M&A processes and business attractiveness presentation.
- 株式会社日本コンサルタントグループ (Nihon Consultant Group)minorPartnership interview subject representing management consulting professionals exploring collaboration in business succession support.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
DESK competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Strike (ストライク): Japan-focused M&A advisory firm serving SMEs and mid-market companies on both buy-side and sell-side mandates. Listed as a partner in NTS's network, indicating overlapping deal flow and client base.
- FUNDBOOK: Japan-focused online M&A matching platform connecting SME owners with potential acquirers, with a strong emphasis on early-stage consultation. Closely comparable in the awareness-building and pre-intermediary funnel that NTS also targets.
- BATONZ (バトンズ): Online SME M&A platform with a heavy regional and rural succession focus, similar to NTS's rural-municipality strategy. Operates a marketplace model for smaller succession deals, overlapping with NTS's deal-size range.
Broad incumbents
- Funai Soken (船井総合研究所): Large Japanese management consulting firm with a dedicated M&A advisory practice serving SMEs. Comparable to NTS in client demographic, with a much broader consulting portfolio that includes business succession support.
- Nihon M&A Center: Japan's largest dedicated SME M&A intermediary, with a national network of regional offices and thousands of closed deals. It is the dominant scaled incumbent that NTS competes against for SME succession mandates.
- Yamada Consulting Group (山田コンサルティンググループ): Japan-headquartered consulting group providing M&A, business succession, and corporate-advisory services to SMEs and mid-market companies. Directly comparable service line and target customer, with much deeper regional coverage.
- M&A Capital Partners: Listed Japanese M&A advisory firm focused on SME and mid-market deals, with both sell-side and buy-side capabilities. Comparable to NTS in target customer and transaction size, but operating at far greater scale.
- M&A Souken Holdings: Tokyo-based M&A intermediary with strong presence in SME succession deals, particularly among owner-operators without heirs. Directly comparable target customer and deal profile to NTS, with broader brand reach.
Regional players
- Relo Group (事業承継支援): Japan-based business succession and corporate-advisory group that supports SME owners with M&A and inheritance planning. Comparable in service mix (succession + advisory) but operates more as a holding-style conglomerate.
Emerging players
- Traimmu (トライエム): Emerging Japanese M&A advisory and business succession platform focused on small businesses. Comparable in size and early-stage posture, and competes with NTS for the same under-served SME succession segment.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
DESK social profiles
Digital presenceDESK financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
DESK leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
DESK funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
DESK M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about DESK
What does DESK do?
株式会社日本提携支援 (NTS) is a Japan-based M&A advisory firm that helps small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) owners navigate business succession. The company positions itself as a pre-intermediary advisor, helping business owners organize their options before engaging formal M&A brokers. Services include M&A consultation (for transferors), acquisition support (for acquirers), proposal support (for referral partners), and subsidy utilization support. The firm leverages a network of 12+ M&A support partners to deliver end-to-end transaction and post-merger integration support.
Is DESK a public or private company?
DESK is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was DESK founded?
DESK was founded in 2023. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is DESK based?
DESK is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, in the Asia region.
How does DESK make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. M&A Advisory Services are the primary driver. The others are professional Services.
Who are DESK's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Strike (ストライク), FUNDBOOK and BATONZ (バトンズ). Broad incumbents are Funai Soken (船井総合研究所), Nihon M&A Center, Yamada Consulting Group (山田コンサルティンググループ), M&A Capital Partners and M&A Souken Holdings. Relo Group (事業承継支援) is listed as a regional player. Traimmu (トライエム) is listed as an emerging player.
Does DESK have an API?
No public API is recorded for DESK.
What industry is DESK in?
DESK's product category is M&A Advisory Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAHAOAA, M&A Advisory (Buy-Side & Sell-Side), with a secondary code of BPAHADAC, M&A Advisory (Buy-side/Sell-side). Its NAICS code is 54161 and its SIC code is 8742.