President, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University Trustee and Vice-Chancellor, The Ritsumeikan Trust
Deguchi Haruaki was inaugurated as the 4th President of APU on January 1, 2018. In a first for the university, Mr. Deguchi was selected by a committee that considered candidates from outside the Ritsumeikan University system.
Mr. Deguchi is the cofounder of Lifenet Insurance, the first independent Japanese insurance company created in 74 years. He served as President and Managing Director from the company’s founding in 2006 until 2013, when he became Chairman and CEO. Previously, Mr. Deguchi held various roles with Nippon Life Insurance Company in a career that spanned nearly 35 years, including president of the company’s London-based subsidiary and general manager of the international business division.
Before joining APU, Mr. Deguchi had been appointed as a lecturer at Keio University and Waseda University. In 2005, he was an advisor to the Office of the President at the University of Tokyo.
Mr. Deguchi is a prolific author, having written more than 35 books. Since January 2018, he has written a monthly opinion column for The Japan Times. He holds a degree from the Faculty of Law at Kyoto University.
