IHREF - Sustainable Investing: The New Norm For Japan?
By Helena Fung, head of sustainable investment, APAC
The appetite among domestic investors in Japan for ESG (environmental, social and governance) instruments has undoubtedly been gaining momentum.
The Japan Sustainable Investment Forum ((JSIF)) reports that total sustainable investment AUM rose to JPY336.4 trillion (USD3.1 trillion) in the 2019 fiscal period, marking a 45% jump from the previous year.[1] These assets, according to the Global Sustainable Investment Alliance ((GSIA)), represent 55.9% of the total professionally managed money in Japan,[2] up from just 3% in 2016.[3]
The GSIA credits progressive moves made by large