As part of his Abenomics program, former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who took office in December 2012, compiled a growth strategy so that more households and public funds would invest in risk assets and growing businesses.
To get the ball rolling, an expert panel recommended in late 2013 to vitalize financial and capital markets, pointing out that nearly half of household assets — totaling around ¥1.6 quadrillion at the time — were held in cash and deposits. Public pensions are also holding massive amounts of Japanese government bonds (JGBs).
The panel described them as “inactive” funds and called for the implementation of strategic structural reform of financial and capital markets to stimulate private sector investments in growing sectors. The panel also said it was necessary to contribute to the economic development of other Asian countries by taking various measures including facilitating corporate funding in such countries.