M&G appoints Dr. Ryohei Yanagi as Deputy President of M&G Japan to enhance investment stewardship capabilities

6 October 2022 – M&G today announces the appointment of Dr. Ryohei Yanagi as its new Deputy President of M&G Investments Japan, to enhance the firm’s Japanese equities stewardship capabilities.

A renowned figure across Japan in both stewardship and ESG circles, Dr. Yanagi is formally appointed to the non-executive role following a prior period of consultancy with M&G Investments Japan. As an adviser to fund manager Carl Vine, Dr. Yanagi will provide expertise and insight to M&G’s portfolio companies, with the role signalling the firm’s intention to become the manager of choice for Japanese companies.

Throughout his career, Dr. Yanagi has worked with a broad range of private companies and public institutions, as well as holding positions in the academic world as visiting professor at Waseda University. He is well known for the work he has conducted on ESG and stewardship, developing the “Yanagi Model”, a formula designed to show the relationship between ESG factors and corporate value.

M&G has a long history of investing in Japan, with its earliest investments stretching back to 1973. Today, M&G has in excess of £5bn invested in listed Japanese companies in funds managed by Carl Vine and his team.

Carl Vine, co-head of Asia Pacific equity investment at M&G, says: “Dr. Yanagi’s appointment is a major milestone for us as we seek to grow our Japanese investment capability and broaden the range of resources we offer to our portfolio companies. Following important governance changes in Japan in recent years, significant opportunity exists to work closely with companies, helping them to become better versions of themselves. This “value-added shareholdership” creates value not only to the companies in which we invest, but also to our investors. Dr. Yanagi’s experience will help us to offer a best-in-class service to our portfolio companies, generating long term value for our clients.”

Loretta Ng, Head of M&G Asia Pacific, says: “We are pleased to be able to add such talent as Dr. Yanagi to our Japan team where we will be able to extend our legacy as good stewards to the capital we manage. His appointment reflects M&G’s commitment to the Asia Pacific region and to being a responsible shareholder. It also builds upon the long history of corporate stewardship and engagement that we enjoy with our portfolio companies. We believe we can contribute to the positive journey that corporate Japan is on by sharing our knowledge and expertise with our investee companies.”

Dr. Ryohei Yanagi, Deputy President at M&G Japan, says: “I am excited to join M&G and to offer my experience to this market leading investment team. With Japan’s corporate governance reform having passed a critical tipping point, there has never been a more opportune time to seek to create value through exemplary stewardship.

I am confident that combining my own broad experience with the investment acumen of the M&G team, we can create win-win situations for both investors and investee companies alike.

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Media enquiries

Irene Chambers

Media Relations

+44 (0)782 569 6815

irene.chambers@mandg.co.uk

Notes to editors

OpenAbout Dr. Ryoheil Yanagi

Dr. Yanagi earned his PhD in Economics at Kyoto University and serves as a visiting professor at the Graduate School of Accountancy, Waseda University. His public service work includes serving on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Listing System Improvement Advisory Committee, as chairman of the Management Finance Course of the Japan Productivity Center's Academy of Management Development. He was also a working group member of the G7 Impact Transparency Task Force 2021 to advise the UK government. Currently he is also an Executive Advisor for Abeam Consulting, advising Japanese corporates on advancing ESG management through his Yanagi Model. In his professional career, he has served as an executive director of UBS Securities, and senior managing executive officer and chief financial officer (CFO) of Eisai Co., one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in Japan. Dr. Yanagi was named the "Best CFO in the Healthcare Sector" in 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020, and 2022 by Institutional Investor magazine's Global Institutional Investor Poll.

OpenAbout M&G Investments

M&G Investments is part of M&G plc, a savings and investment business which was formed in 2017 through the merger of Prudential plc’s UK and Europe savings and insurance operation and M&G, its wholly owned international investment manager. M&G plc listed as an independent company on the London Stock Exchange in October 2019 and has over $348.9 billion of assets under management (as at 30 June 2022). M&G plc has customers in the UK, Europe, the Americas and Asia, including individual savers and investors, life insurance policy holders and pension scheme members.

For more information, please visit: https://global.mandg.com/

OpenDisclaimer

This press release reflects the authors’ present opinions reflecting current market conditions; are subject to change without notice; and involve a number of assumptions which may not prove valid. It has been written for informational purposes only and should not be considered as investment advice or as a recommendation of any particular security, strategy or investment product. Past performance is not a guide to future performance.
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