Notice of Appointment of New Director of NETSTARS – Former LINE Pay Director Hisahiro Chofuku Appointed as Director and COO

NETSTARS Co., Ltd. (headquarters: Chuo-ku, Tokyo; Representative director: Tsuyoshi Ri; “NETSTARS”) will appoint Hisahiro Chofuku as Director and COO (Chief Operating Officer) on February 1, 2022.

NETSTARS has focused on the shift toward cashless payment through the StarPay QR code payment service implemented in over 200,000 stores throughout Japan. The company is also focusing its efforts on mini-apps promoting store DX and the StarPay-Order mobile order service for restaurants.After serving as Representative Director of LINE Business Partners Corporation, Chofuku served in numerous key positions in the payment industry including Director and COO of LINE Pay Corporation. He has been involved in fintech such as mobile funds transfers and payment for many years. Based on Chofuku’s business experience, we will aim to achieve speedy deployment and business expansion in new areas the company is focusing upon such as payment and mini-apps.

[Hisahiro Chofuku career summary]

After working at Advantage Corporation and Magi Ice Japan Corporation, joined Livedoor (currently LINE) in 2009. Joined LINE Business Partners Corporation in 2013 and served as Representative Director from 2014. Appointed as Director and COO of LINE Pay Corporation due to the merger with LINE Pay in 2017. Worked on LINE Pay and LINE@ at LINE Pay. Appointed as Representative Director, President & CEO of LINE Pay in 2020. Jointed NETSTARS in October 2021, and appointed Director and COO in February 2022.

[Comment by Hisahiro Chofuku]

“Money, effortless and natural” NETSTARS, which has grown rapidly as a pioneer of QR code payment gateways, has reached a stage where it can make further leaps in business expansion. With my appointment as COO, I will dedicate every fiber of my being to “work with everyone involved with NETSTARS” to contribute to the digitalization of payment and society.

■ About NETSTARS Co., Ltd.

The company has conducted a gateway business since it was founded in 2009. It became the first agent in Japan of the WeChatPay QR code payment service in 2015. Since then, it has operated the StarPay service enabling QR code payment services to be deployed and managed in Japan and overseas at once. At present, the company is engaged in diversified services based on the technological strength of StarPay.