The trust was launched in 2018 and looks to invest in smaller Japanese companies. The aim is to invest in cash rich undervalued companies. These will be high quality with resilient earnings and with the ability to help improve corporate governance, the investment team look to unlock the value within those companies.
The fund is tilted towards the domestic story and many would have had little impact from COVID19. Fujitec is an elevator and escalators business, and Teikoku Sen-I Disaster provides prevention equipment.
Holding cash is important for Japanese businesses so they can pay staff, pensioners and not be reliant on the government to help them. What the investment team are looking at is those inefficient balance sheets and the way they look to engage is through the least public means, but they will go public if they have to. Fujitec is an example of a company they have engaged with where it was more about operational inefficiencies and poor capital discipline….read more