Japan’s ¥162trn Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF), the world’s largest pension fund, has hired DBJ Asset Management to invest in infrastructure.
DBJ will “focus mainly on opportunities in Japan”, according to GPIF’s website.
The appointment comes a year after GPIF issued a request for proposals for infrastructure and real estate multi-managers.
More recently, it hired Sumitomo Mitsui Asset Management Company and StepStone Infrastructure & Real Assets, and Nomura Asset Management and Pantheon, respectively, for two global infrastructure mandates.
In December, it hired Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation for a domestic real estate mandate.
The industry is still waiting for the pension fund to award a global real estate mandate.
Yukihiko Ito, managing partner of Japanese placement agency Asterisk Realty, who has been tracking GPIF’s moves into alternative investments, said: “This is the first major action made by GPIF since the fiscal year started in April.
“We expect they will make further announcements as they are expected to expand investment approaches over [fund-of-funds] investment later this year. The market is watching their announcement for appointment of overseas real estate [fund-of-funds] manager.”
