2017 May C20 – Shifting A Nation- From Savers To Investors

For decades, Japan has been the land of low interest rates, and with the advent of Abenomics interest rates have gone from low to zero and even into negative territory. Taking a loan has never been so cheap, yet Japanese citizens and companies continue to hesitate to borrow and invest. Citizens in Japan are sitting on huge and increasing savings, more than half of which lay idle in cash deposits bearing no interest. The government wants to change the country from a savings mindset to an investing mindset to ensure better future prospects for all, and has engaged various measures towards that goal. But encouraging people to take more risk is one thing; protecting the public from overly risky or unscrupulous investments is another. This makes changing the savings to investment transition even more challenging. Enter the revived concept of Fiduciary Duty, Japan-style, which requires our banks and financial intermediaries to implement measures protecting their clients and investors.

In the May CI meeting, experienced banker and financial boss Mr. Laurent Depus leads the discussion on what is going on inside the consumer market, the banking industry, and government. Mr. Depus is the Managing Director of French financial house Natixis’ Japan business and a long term resident of Japan. He also serves on the board of a Japanese financial industry leading firm.

Come join us for insights on what our bankers sell us in Japan, and how!