Investment house Neuberger Berman has announced the launch of its first Japan-based equities team, which will be led by Keita Kubota.
Kubota has been appointed as the managing director and senior portfolio manager. He joins the firm from Aberdeen Standard Investments, where he served for more than 13 years and was most recently the deputy head of Japan equities.
Kubota’s team will manage the Japan Equity Engagement Strategy, which is looking to generate returns via active engagement and dialog with Japanese small/mid-cap companies. The strategy will be available to institutional and high net-worth clients.
Kubota will be supported by two analysts, including Naoto Saito, who joined Neuberger Berman in September as a senior research analyst. He has a generalist focus, the firm said in a statement. The second analyst will specialise in environmental, social and governance (ESG) investing.
“We look forward to the further expansion of ESG investing in Japan as companies have increased their awareness of corporate governance and other material factors,” said Ryo Ohira, head of Neuberger Berman east Asia.
“We think encouraging Japanese companies to improve their ESG factors through our active engagement can generate superior returns,” added Ohira.
Neuberger Berman manages $53 billion in client assets in Japan and $339 billion globally as of September 30, 2019, the firm said.
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