Morgan Stanley’s asset management division has more than doubled the size of its Japanese portfolio over the past three years, aided by the increased appetite for funds strong on environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors.
The value of Japanese assets overseen by Morgan Stanley Investment Management rose to ¥6.6 trillion ($58 billion) in September, compared with about ¥3.1 trillion around the end of 2018, according to the division’s Japan head, Hiroyuki Shimizu. Holdings in ESG-related funds accounted for about a third of the increase, he said.
Japanese interest in ESG products has "clearly strengthened,” Shimizu said in an interview. "Not everyone is investing yet, and some are still studying them.”