Fumihiko Otsuka was named representative director and president of Mercer’s investment solutions business in Japan.
A spokeswoman said Mercer won regulatory approval for a discretionary investment management license last month.
The Mercer unit will target institutional investors in Japan, including “foreign capital pension sponsors and financial institutions based in Japan that need risk-focused investment solutions,” a news release said.
Services offered for asset owners will include “implementation of investment strategy, asset allocation, risk, returns and governance.”
Mr. Otsuka, who previously served as head of corporate strategy and development with Invesco Asset Management (Japan), will report to Jeffery J. Schutes, growth markets investments business leader, and Tatsuya Kamoi, Far East market leader.
Mr. Schutes cited in the release the recent push by Japan's public pension funds into higher-risk, higher-return assets and the challenges of the country's aging demographic profile as factors that made Japan a logical first stop for the firm's delegated investment solutions business in Asia.
The spokeswoman said the business will be extended to other markets in Asia in the coming months. She declined to provide further details.
The Mercer news release said the company's delegated investment solutions business in the U.S., Europe and Asia had assets under management of $136 billion as of June 30.
