Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Asset Management, a large Japanese asset manager with $748 billion assets under management, makes senior hire.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Asset Management (SuMi Trust) has named Takahiro Kobayashi (pictured) as its new president and CEO.

Kobayashi will replace Yoshio Hishida, the firm’s president and CEO since 2018, as part of a phased transition of responsibilities. Hishida will remain as a non-executive director and will take on the role of global asset management officer for the whole SuMi TRUST Group.

Kobayashi has 20 years of experience in the industry, the firm said in a statement. He joined Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank in 2004 and became executive officer of SuMi TRUST Asset Management in 2023.

As president, his remit will be to drive SuMi TRUST’s expansion connecting with investors in the US, Europe, the Middle East and Asia where there is growing demand for SuMi TRUST’s active Japanese products and passive mandates.

As global asset management officer, Hishida will bring his experience to bear, the firm continued. He will oversee and develop all asset management firms within the SuMi TRUST Group, with the aim of providing new solutions for investors both in Japan and overseas.

“Overseas investors are showing increasing interest in the Japanese market and we have received a growing number of inquiries about investment opportunities,” Kobayashi said. “Expectations are high for the transformation of Japanese companies, particularly governance reforms aimed at improving return on equity (ROE) and price-to-book value (PBR). We believe this momentum will help drive further growth in Japan’s equity market, while also creating significant growth opportunities for our Japanese equity active strategies, which are built on decades of expertise in selecting quality companies.”

“It’s vital to create an environment where all officers and employees can take bold action. My aim is to gradually build such an organisation over time,” Kobayashi added. “For this reason, in my interactions with employees, I constantly remind myself to remain humble. As the saying goes, ‘The ears of rice bow lower as they bear fruit’ – I want to embody that spirit.”

A number of firms, such as Tokyo-headquartered Nomura Asset Management, are showing a sense of optimism about prospects for Japan and its equity market into 2026. The sustained return of inflation and gradual monetary policy normalisation by the Bank of Japan (BoJ) since its 2024 exit from negative interest rates, have been tailwinds for Japanese stocks. See more here.