Yasuchika Asaoka, the recently appointed president at Barclays Global Investors Japan, says his challenge is to take a market-leading position managing pension assets and diversify that, as Japan's asset management industry continues its new and rapid evolution.
This may include forging new relationships with local firms with distribution power, broadening the clientele to include more financial institutions or retail investors, and enhancing capability in areas such as domestic fixed income, he says.
Asaoka joined BGI Japan in March as an advisor to its trust bank run by former Merrill Lynch Investment Managers veteran David Semaya and assuming the presidency on April 1, taking over from the long-serving...