Mizuho Financial Group Inc. said Wednesday it will take a roughly 16 percent stake in Matthews International Capital Management LLC, a U.S. fund management company with a focus on Asia, in a bid to improve the profitability of its asset management business.
Mizuho Financial is expected to invest around ¥23.9 billion ($200 million) to acquire shares in Matthews International from existing shareholders by the end of March and dispatch an official to the American company's management board.
Mizuho will sell the U.S. firm's Asia-focused investment trusts to Japanese individuals and institutional investors, it said.
In the face of difficulties in securing profits domestically amid low interest rates, the major Japanese banking group has been consolidating its asset management services within the group and also boosting its investment portfolio.
The group is hoping to expand its assets through its acquisition in San Francisco-based Matthews International, which has been buying shares and bonds issued by companies in such countries as China, India and South Korea, according to a source familiar with the move.