Bloomberg- Hiromichi Tsuyukubo ran the best- performing fund in Japan at Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co., an arm of the nation’s biggest lender. Then, after six years, he decided to join a hedgefund.
“Back at my old job, I couldn’t protect my clients’ money with all the investment restrictions,” said Tsuyukubo, 48, who joined Tokyo-based Myojo Asset Management Japan Co. last year. “With the new job, I could start from scratch as to how I will manage the fund. That’s a big reward.”
The number of hedge funds in Japan has tripled, to 270, in five years. Assets have more than doubled, to $36 billion, in the period. Investors are seeking returns better than Japanese stocks, which have underperformed global shares over the past three years.
As in the U.S., hedge funds are private, largely unregulated pools of capital that cater to wealthy individuals with a minimum $700,000 to invest, and institutions. Managers can buy and sell any assets and participate in the profits.
Japanese hedge funds will see only a limited impact from the global credit crunch that has roiled stock markets worldwide and led to the collapse of two Bear Stearns Cos. hedge funds, said Kirby Daley. He advises investors at Societe Generale SA’s Fimat unit in Hong Kong.
