“Although the field of foreign investment banks active in Japan has dramatically thinned over the years, those that have stayed the course are in an unusually bright frame of mind today. The reason is a boost in M&A opportunity; the story of how we got here goes back several generations.”…
…” ” There are few domestic activists, but at least local investors have become engaged, voting their shares and making recommendations to management. “They’re not really putting strong pressure on, but recommending, proposing corporate changes to management for the long term,” says Yamada. “They’re not asking for a dividend pay-out. It’s more how the organization can be clear on core and non-core strategy.” Every banker says this has led to a big change in their communication with executives.
“Now,” says Nakamura, “whenever I speak with a CEO or CFO of a large Japanese corporate, what they care about is how they can improve their stock price and how they can convince important global investors that they have changed.” “
Read the full article here: Governance brings an M&A bounty to Japan