Stayway

What Stayway does

Stayway Inc. is a Japanese B2B SaaS and professional services company founded in July 2017 by Sato Jun, a certified public accountant and former Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu professional. The company operates the 'Subsidy Cloud' platform, a cloud-based service providing subsidy application support to Japanese small and medium-sized enterprises, regional financial institutions, licensed professionals, lease companies, and local governments. The platform combines a proprietary database of more than 9,000 national and regional subsidy programs with generative AI document generation built on OpenAI's GPT-4 and a RAG-style architecture, reportedly reducing application preparation time from 20 hours to 12 minutes and delivering approval rates roughly 2.5x the national average. Product variants are segmented by buyer type: for Bank, for Sales, for Pro, for SMEs, for Startup, for ESG, for Gov, and for Lease.

The business model is a hybrid of SaaS subscriptions (tiered by customer segment, with pricing not publicly disclosed), embedded professional services delivered by in-house CPAs and administrative scriveners, and a transaction-based early payment product ('Mae Hojo-kun' / 前ほじょくん) that purchases subsidy claims ahead of disbursement. Go-to-market is overwhelmingly B2B2B, with 47 financial institution partners and approximately 4,950 branch locations serving as the primary distribution channel under an OEM/white-label arrangement. Direct sales and government contracts complement the channel model. Revenue is undisclosed, and cumulative external funding is approximately 150M JPY across two rounds (50M JPY in January 2019 and a 75M JPY hybrid round in November 2021). The company is headquartered in Osaka with additional offices in Tokyo, Fukuoka, and Sapporo, and was ranked 12th in the 2025 Deloitte Tohmatsu Technology Fast 50 Japan.

Name

Stayway

Legal name

株式会社Stayway

Website

https://stayway.co.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Stayway is a Japanese B2B SaaS company that operates Subsidy Cloud, a platform combining a 9,000+ subsidy database with GPT-4-based document generation to help SMEs, regional banks, and licensed professionals apply for government subsidies. It distributes primarily through 47 financial institution partners across Japan.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Subsidy Application Management Software

NAICS

Computer Systems Design and Related Services (54151), Computer Facilities Management Services (541513)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Services-Management Services (8741)

akta.pro primary industry

Policy, Governance & Compliance Management for Private Cloud (HDABABAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Software/Application Support (SaaS, Enterprise Apps) (BPAAACAC), Cloud Operations Outsourcing (Cloud Managed Operations) (BPAEAMAC)

Keywords

• Subsidy application platform
• Digital transformation consulting
• SME DX services
• Generative AI document automation
• Government subsidy matching

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. SaaS Subscription Fees: Stayway generates recurring revenue through subscription fees for its Subsidy Cloud SaaS platform. Financial institutions pay for the service to provide subsidy support to their customers. The platform is offered in multiple variants: for Bank (financial institutions), for Sales (corporate sales), for Pro (accounting/legal professionals), for SMEs (small businesses), for Startup (startups), and for ESG (sustainability-focused).
2. Professional Consulting Services: Stayway provides professional consulting services through its team of certified public accountants and administrative scriveners to support complex subsidy applications. This includes specialized OJT-type consulting where experts work alongside client teams on actual application cases.
3. Early Subsidy Payment Service (前ほじょくん): Subsidy claim early payment service that enables businesses to receive subsidy funds before the standard payment timeline. This addresses the cash flow challenge associated with traditional subsidy reimbursement cycles.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Stayway operates a cloud-based SaaS platform called "Subsidy Cloud" (補助金クラウド) that helps small and medium enterprises, financial institutions, and licensed professionals identify, apply for, and manage government subsidies in Japan. The platform combines a proprietary database of 9,000+ subsidy programs with generative AI (GPT-4) powered document generation, supported by a team of certified public accountants and administrative scriveners for professional application support. The company also offers an early subsidy payment service (Mae Hojo-kun) to address cash flow gaps, plus specialized modules for lease companies, ESG initiatives, and government use.

Product overview

Stayway operates a platform-plus-modules product architecture centered on 'Subsidy Cloud (補助金クラウド)', a comprehensive subsidy DX service. The core platform offers versions targeting different customer segments: for Bank (financial institutions), for Sales (corporate sales), for Pro (licensed professionals), for SMEs, for Startup, and for ESG/sustainability. The AI-powered 'Subsidy Cloud Powered by GPT-4' uses generative AI to automate document creation. Supporting modules include '前ほじょくん' for early subsidy fund liquidation, 'for Lease' for equipment lease companies, and 'for Gov' for government use. The company also offers 'BPass' combining BPO with SaaS, plus consulting services for subsidy application support, mid-tier enterprise growth, fundraising, and M&A/business succession.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Subsidy Cloud (補助金クラウド): Cloud-based DX service for subsidy application support, offering database of over 9,000 subsidy types, AI-powered document generation, and consultation services for SMEs, financial institutions, and licensed professionals.
• Subsidy Cloud for Bank
• Subsidy Cloud for Sales
• Subsidy Cloud for Pro
• Subsidy Cloud for SMEs
• Subsidy Cloud for Startup
• Subsidy Cloud for Government
• Subsidy Cloud for ESG
• Subsidy Cloud for Lease
• Mae Hojo-kun (前ほじょくん)
• Subsidy Cloud Powered by GPT-4
• Subsidy Way (補助金way)

Products and services

• Subsidy Cloud for Bank (補助金クラウドfor Bank) Cloud-based subsidy support service for financial institutions (regional banks, shinkin banks, credit unions) enabling end-to-end support from customer information provision to application assistance, with consulting support from certified public accountants and administrative scriveners. Includes subsidy database access, application support tools, staff training, and dashboard analytics. Financial institutions can rebrand the service under their own name.
• Subsidy Cloud for Sales (補助金クラウドfor Sales) Subsidy support service for corporate sales teams to help business clients access subsidies for growth investments. Designed for companies whose sales forces support business clients with subsidy identification and application.
• Subsidy Cloud for Pro (補助金クラウドfor Pro) Subsidy application support service for licensed professionals such as certified public accountants, administrative scriveners, and recognized support institutions. Provides the database, AI-powered document generation, and collaboration tools to support advisory services for clients.
• Subsidy Cloud for SMEs (補助金クラウドfor SMEs) Subsidy application support service directly for small and medium-sized enterprises to find and apply for suitable subsidies. Provides database access to 9,000+ subsidy programs and AI-powered document creation tools.
• Subsidy Cloud for Startup (補助金クラウドfor Startup) Subsidy support service tailored for startup companies to leverage subsidies for growth investments, including access to startup-relevant programs and growth-focused subsidies.
• Subsidy Cloud Powered by GPT-4 (補助金クラウド Powered by GPT-4) AI-powered version of Subsidy Cloud using GPT-4 for automated subsidy application document creation, reducing document creation time by approximately 99% (from 20 hours to 12 minutes) through generative AI technology. Uses RAG architecture to access 9,000+ subsidy information records for compliance-aware document generation.
• Mae Hojo-kun (前ほじょくん) - Subsidy Claim Early Payment Service Early fund liquidation service for subsidy claims, allowing companies to receive subsidy funds faster before official approval and disbursement. Addresses cash flow challenges associated with traditional post-payment subsidy reimbursement cycles.
• Subsidy Cloud for ESG (補助金クラウドfor ESG) Subsidy support service focused on ESG and sustainability-related subsidies for corporate sustainability management. Combines Stayway's subsidy expertise with Pasona Sustainability's environmental diagnostics and GHG emissions visualization capabilities.
• Subsidy Cloud for Government (補助金クラウド for Gov) Government-facing subsidy DX service for local governments to manage and promote subsidy programs. First launched with Aomori City in May 2025 and showcased publicly at Kyushu Innovation WEEK. Supports local business DX acceleration plans by providing detailed subsidy information to local businesses.
• Subsidy Cloud for Lease (補助金クラウド for Lease) BPaaS service combining lease case management with Subsidy Cloud, solving lease-specific challenges in case registration, updates, and mid-term management for subsidy-utilized equipment investments. Integrates subsidy selection with lease financing for equipment purchases.
• BPass (BPass BPO×SaaS) Business process outsourcing service combined with SaaS, offering integrated operational solutions for subsidy management. Combines human-driven BPO services with software workflows for end-to-end subsidy support.
• Generative AI Services (Regulation Exploration, Inheritance DX, etc.) Generative AI services including regulation exploration and inheritance DX for automating document processes and knowledge retrieval. Extends Stayway's GPT-4 capabilities beyond subsidy applications to other regulatory and document-heavy workflows.
• Subsidy Application Support (Consulting Service) Professional consulting services for subsidy application support including business plan formulation and application document preparation, delivered by certified public accountants and administrative scriveners.
• Mid-Tier Enterprise Support (中堅企業支援) Support services specifically designed for mid-tier enterprises including growth strategy and subsidy utilization for larger capital investments.
• Fundraising Support (資金調達支援) Fundraising support services combining subsidy utilization with financing solutions, helping businesses access both government subsidies and private capital.
• M&A and Business Succession Support M&A and business succession support services for companies undergoing ownership or operational transitions, often combined with subsidy utilization advice.

Quantifiable outcome

• Document preparation time reduced from 20 hours to 12 minutes (approximately 99% reduction)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles7 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability6 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Nishitetsu Gas (西部ガス)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Open innovation partnership combining Stayway's subsidy support expertise with Nishitetsu Gas's extensive customer base in northern Kyushu (Fukuoka, Kumamoto, Nagasaki). Western gas sales staff identify subsidy needs during regular customer interactions and refer complex cases to Stayway. This enables Western Gas to offer comprehensive business support beyond traditional energy services, creating new customer experience.
• Hirogin Lease (ひろぎんリース)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 June 2026Business partnership to provide integrated support from subsidy utilization through equipment investment. Hirogin Lease uses Subsidy Cloud to offer customers suitable subsidy information timely, with Stayway's CPAs and administrative scriveners providing application support. Combined with Hirogin Lease's financing expertise, this enables one-stop support from subsidy selection through equipment financing and investment execution.
• Hiroshima Shinkin BankmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 March 2026Business partnership to enhance subsidy utilization support for SMEs in Hiroshima Prefecture. Combines Stayway's subsidy cloud platform with bank's extensive local business network to help companies access subsidies for growth investment, including business plan formulation assistance. Partnership establishes sustainable support model positioning subsidies as medium-to-long-term growth tool.
• JA Gifu Shinren (JA岐阜信連)majorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 March 2026Subsidy support partnership for local farmers in Gifu Prefecture. JA Gifu Shinren leverages Subsidy Cloud to deliver timely subsidy information and application support to farmers facing challenges including successor shortages and high capital investment costs. Aims to create comprehensive support system from information provision to application assistance, contributing to Gifu local economy revitalization.
• Shizuoka Yaizu Shinkin BankmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 March 2026Subsidy Cloud service provision for Shizuoka Bank to support SMEs in Shizuoka Prefecture with growth investments through subsidy utilization. The service provides access to database covering over 9,000 types of national and regional subsidy information, streamlining the process from information gathering to application support. Both aim to enhance sophistication of subsidy application support and contribute to sustainable growth of regional companies.
• Regional Future Administrative Scrivener CorporationcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 March 2026Partnership to establish three-party contract structure (customer, Stayway, firm) ensuring compliance with revised Administrative Scrivener Act and October 2025 administrative guidance under Gray Zone Resolution System. Initiative provides safe and secure subsidy application support while maintaining legal compliance.
• Pasona Sustainability (パソナサステナビリティ)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2026Business partnership for corporate sustainability management through strategic subsidy utilization. Pasona Sustainability customers gain access to Subsidy Cloud's application support including certified public accountants and administrative scriveners, while Subsidy Cloud customers requiring environmental diagnostics or GHG emissions visualization are referred to Pasona Sustainability's specialized services. Partnership enables integrated sustainability support combining subsidy strategy with execution expertise.
• 77 Bank (七十七銀行)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 July 2025Subsidy Cloud provision to strengthen regional company support and hub functions connecting local businesses with growth markets. Partnership follows business matching contract established in November 2024. The bank uses Subsidy Cloud's database of 9,000+ subsidies to help regional SMEs identify and apply for suitable subsidies, aiming to enhance consulting functions across all bank branches.
• Hiroshima Bank (広島銀行)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 May 2024Business partnership for subsidy application support to regional SMEs. Stayway provides OJT-type consulting support for energy conservation subsidies (省エネルギー投資促進・需要構造転換支援事業費補助金), working alongside Hiroshima Bank staff on actual applications. The partnership, established May 2024, includes joint customer engagement, energy efficiency calculations, and document preparation support. Hiroshima Bank ranked first among regional financial institutions for Large-Scale Growth Investment Subsidy confirmation document issuance.
• Hiroshima PrefecturecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 April 2024Contracted by Hiroshima Prefecture to provide subsidy information collection services supporting local business DX. Stayway provides detailed information on subsidies that local private companies can utilize from among the 3,000+ subsidies nationwide. This supports Hiroshima's DX acceleration plan and helps local businesses identify and apply for relevant subsidies.
• TOMOSHIBI Open Innovation PlatformminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2023Stayway is selected for Western Gas Group's open innovation platform 'TOMOSHIBI' which opened October 2024. The platform combines Western Gas Group's customer base and infrastructure with startup innovative ideas and technology to create new value and businesses. Stayway's PoC initiatives are featured as open innovation examples in Fukuoka.
• Hokkaido BankcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 September 2023Full-branch implementation of Subsidy Cloud for all bank branches. Joint seminar with Stayway at FIT Tokyo 2023 to present results of generative AI demonstration experiment using Subsidy Cloud Powered by GPT-4.
• Hokuriku BankcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 September 2023Full-branch implementation of Subsidy Cloud for all bank branches. Joint demonstration experiment with Stayway on generative AI subsidy document generation using GPT-4 technology.
• Mitsubishi UFJ BankminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 September 2023Strategic partnership announced November 2022 with KDDI and Stayway for business verification of subsidy application support services targeting small businesses. MUFG and KDDI planned to leverage their extensive customer bases to provide subsidy application support and business expansion assistance.
• Osaka Shoko Shinkin Bank (大阪商工信用金庫)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 August 2023First shinkin bank nationwide to adopt Subsidy Cloud, in partnership for startup support and customer decarbonization promotion. Partnership enables branch staff to easily obtain subsidy information and share customer data with headquarters.
• KDDIminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2022Joint business verification with Mitsubishi UFJ Bank and Stayway for SME subsidy application support services. Partnership leveraging KDDI's telecommunications customer base and Stayway's technology for rapid service deployment.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• freee: freee provides cloud-based accounting, payroll, HR, and tax SaaS products targeted at Japanese SMEs and freelancers. Closely comparable to Stayway in go-to-market (cloud SaaS for underserved SMEs), product-led approach, and segment-by-segment product strategy (freee for small biz, freee for HR, etc., mirroring Stayway's for-Bank, for-SME, for-Pro variants).
• Money Forward: Money Forward is a leading Japanese cloud SaaS platform providing financial and HR back-office services (accounting, payroll, expense management) to SMEs and enterprises. Highly comparable to Stayway as both target Japanese SMEs with cloud-native SaaS and pursue a vertical SaaS strategy with multiple product variants; Money Forward is the larger, listed incumbent in this peer set.

Broad incumbents

• Deloitte Tohmatsu: Deloitte Tohmatsu is Japan's largest professional services firm and is both Stayway's team alma mater (multiple CPA hires) and an awards partner (Fast 50). Comparable as a provider of professional services to financial institutions and SMEs, with subsidy-related advisory practices — a potential competitor but also a partner ecosystem.
• Yayoi: Yayoi is the established Japanese SME accounting and payroll software incumbent (Yayoi Accounting, Yayoi Aruite) with deep accountant and small-business distribution. Comparable as an SME-focused back-office SaaS play in Japan, though far more established and dominant in core accounting while Stayway targets a different workflow (subsidy support).
• KDDI: KDDI is one of Japan's largest telecom operators with a substantial enterprise and SMB solutions business. Comparable because KDDI is both a Stayway strategic partner (joint MUFG/KDDI subsidy support verification) and a broad-incumbent player with customer-base reach that could either remain a partner or compete in the SME DX space.
• Chatwork: Chatwork is a Tokyo-listed Japanese business communication SaaS company serving SMEs with chat and workflow tools. Comparable as a domestic Japanese SaaS company focused on digitizing SME workflows, though Chatwork's category (communication) is adjacent rather than overlapping with Stayway's subsidy-document focus.
• RAKUS: RAKUS is a Tokyo-listed Japanese SaaS company providing back-office cloud solutions (Rakuraku Seisan, Rakuraku Meisai) targeting SMEs and accounting firms. Comparable to Stayway as a Japanese vertical SaaS player serving SMEs and accounting professionals, with overlapping professional-services channel partners.
• Sansan: Sansan operates cloud-based business contact and contract management platforms (Sansan, Eight, Bill One) targeting Japanese enterprises. Comparable as a Japanese B2B SaaS leader with a multi-product platform strategy and a focus on digitizing paper-based business workflows — adjacent to Stayway's mission of digitizing subsidy paperwork.

Emerging players

• PKSHA Technology: PKSHA Technology is a Tokyo-listed AI/NLP platform company building natural language and machine learning solutions for Japanese enterprises, including document automation. Comparable as a Japanese AI-for-business-documents player; PKSHA operates across many use cases while Stayway is vertically specialized in subsidy documents.
• ELYZA: ELYZA is a Tokyo-based AI company specializing in Japanese large language models for business document generation and analysis. Directly comparable to Stayway's Subsidy Cloud Powered by GPT-4 use case — Japanese-language document automation — though ELYZA provides horizontal LLM tooling while Stayway applies it to the vertical subsidy domain.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/stayway.jp

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Stayway