Japan Post to set up private equity investment arm

[TOKYO] Newly privatised Japan Post Bank Co, which manages 205 trillion yen (S$2.36 trillion) in mainly Japanese government bonds, will set up a division to look for opportunities in private equity investments, the bank said on Tuesday.

The bank has named Tokihiko Shimizu, a former welfare ministry bureaucrat who led the Government Pension Investment Fund's (GPIF) drive to diversify its allocation of money into alternative assets including private equity and property, as head of the new operation.

The new Private Equity Investment Department will be set up on Dec 1, the statement said.

REUTERS