Even though interest rates have risen, is the money in your bank account actually decreasing? The real reason why more people are holding stocks

Have you heard on the news recently that
“bank interest rates have gone up”
?

“Interest rates…? I’ve heard of them, but honestly, I don’t really understand them.”

That’s okay.
Most people feel the same way☺️
It’s just that we never had a proper opportunity to learn about it in school or at work.

Today, starting from “What is an interest rate?”, I will explain it in a way that even those with zero knowledge can understand.

By the time you finish reading, you should be able to instantly understand
“So that’s why more people are holding stocks now!”
✨

What is an interest rate?

When you deposit money into a bank,
the bank lends that money to other people or companies to conduct business.

That is why the bank gives you a little something as a

thank you for depositing your money.

This thank-you payment is called “interest,”, and the percentage of how much you receive in a year is called
“interest rate.”

In other words, you can just remember that
interest rate = the percentage of the “thank-you” payment added to the money deposited in the bank
.

That thank-you payment has increased slightly.

Starting in November 2026, major banks (Mitsubishi UFJ Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, and Mizuho Bank) raised this percentage.

To give you an idea of how much…

If you deposit 1 million yen for one year, the thank-you payment is 5,000 yen.
Since taxes are deducted from this, the actual increase is about 4,000 yen.

By the way, a little while ago (until the spring of 2024), even if you deposited 1 million yen for a year, the thank-you payment was
only 10 yen.

From 10 yen to 4,000 yen.
You feel like, “We’ve entered an era where money grows even in the bank!”

But the prices of goods are rising even more.

Now, try to imagine the snack aisle at the supermarket🍫

A chocolate bar that you could buy for 100 yen last year
is now about 103 yen.

Actually, this is about the average for all of Japan.
In 2025, the prices of goods and services rose by an average of about 3%.

When the prices of goods rise across the board, it is called inflation.

If we think about this using the 1 million yen from earlier…

Money gained from bank deposits
→ about 4,000 yen

Additional expenses due to rising prices
→ about 32,000 yen

What do you think?

The money in your bank account is certainly increasing.
However, because the prices of goods are rising even more than that,
what you can actually buy is decreasing 🥹

It is good news that bank interest rates have risen.
However, just depositing money in the bank cannot keep up with the way prices are rising.
This is the current situation in Japan.

So, what should you do?

This is where stocks come in.

In a nutshell, stocks are
the ‘ownership rights’ of a company divided into small pieces.

…That might not make sense, so let me give you an analogy 🥐

Suppose there is a popular bakery in your neighborhood.
The bakery is raising money to expand its business.

So you say,
‘I want to support you, so I will provide some money!’
and you provide the funds.

What you receive in return is a ‘stock’.
When you own stock, you become one of the owners of that bakery.

When the prices of goods rise, a business’s profits are also likely to increase

This is the most important point for today.

When the prices of goods rise,
we feel like, ‘Oh no, my expenses are increasing…’

But what does it look like from the bakery’s perspective?

The price of bread goes up
→ The store’s sales also increase
→ Stores that manage their operations well are more likely to increase their profits

In fact, the profits of major Japanese companies are currently expected to reach record highs.

In other words,
an era where the prices of goods rise is also an era where company profits are more likely to increase.

If you own stocks, you can receive a share of the profits

When you become an owner of a bakery,
there are two ways to receive a share of the store’s profits.

① Sharing the profits (dividends)
If the store makes a profit, you can receive a portion of it in cash.
This is called “dividends”.

② The stock price increases
When a store becomes popular, more people say, “I want to own stock in this store too!”
As a result, the stock price rises, and you can sell it for more than you paid.

And currently, Japanese companies are steadily increasing the amount of profits they distribute to shareholders.

This is the important part.

Even if company profits increase, only those who “own the stock” can receive them.

You work and receive a salary.
In addition to that, you own stock and receive a share of the company’s profits.

The number of people who have these “two wallets” is increasing in Japan today👛

Moreover, there is a way to avoid taxes

Money earned from stocks is usually subject to about 20% in taxes.
If you make 10,000 yen, about 2,000 yen goes to taxes.

However, if you buy stocks using a system provided by the government called “NISA”, you do not have to pay this tax.

Today, about one in four adults in Japan has a NISA account.
Stocks are no longer just “for the wealthy.”

However, there is something to be careful about

Having read this far,
you might have thought, “So, should I just buy stock in any bakery?”

But please let me be honest with you here.

While there are stores that become popular and continue to make profits,
there are also stores that lose customers and struggle.

Stocks are the same.
Not every company’s stock will go up.
Sometimes, the stock price can drop lower than when you bought it.

That is precisely why what is important is
the ability to discern for yourself ‘which shops (companies) will grow in the future’.

Whether or not you can stand on the ‘receiving side’

Now that the prices of goods are rising,
even if you live in the same era,

・People who just deposit money in the bank and see what they can buy gradually decrease
・People who own stocks and receive the company’s profits

With these two, the landscape a few years from now might change.

In the 3-day program in December, rather than ‘which stocks to buy,’ I will share
‘steps to becoming an investor who can choose for themselves’. Once you acquire that skill, no matter how the times change, you will be able to make your own judgments💐 Please also read the testimonials of women who started investing and took a step forward into a life where they can choose for themselves↓

Thank you so much for reading this far💕

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🎁 Starting December 1st, I will be holding a free ‘World’s Easiest 3-Day Stock Getting Started Program’.

From zero knowledge to how to choose companies that will grow in the future, I will gently teach you over 3 days✨

▼Participate here (free)
👉 https://lp.hnmr.info/p/q0fuq5kQ3Q8e?ftid=JKtmVs7w7eCE

In the participant-only open chat, we are also delivering exclusive testimonial videos from students🌙

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※Regarding the figures in this article
・Example of 1 million yen: Calculated for 1 year with an interest rate of 0.5% (approx. 3,984 yen after deducting 20.315% tax) and a 3.2% rise in the price of goods
・Reference: Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications Statistics Bureau ‘Consumer Price Index 2025 Average’ (+3.2% year-on-year), announcements from major banks (0.5% savings account interest rate from November 2, 2026), SMBC Nikko Securities compilation (profits of listed companies for the fiscal year ending March 2026), Nomura Securities ‘FY2026 Shareholder Return Outlook’, National Tax Agency ‘No.1463’, Financial Services Agency ‘Survey on NISA Account Usage (as of the end of December 2025)’