Hedge fund picker turns to activists to bet on Japan changing

SINGAPORE: Ed Rogers, who runs a fund of hedge funds in Tokyo, is adding another activist to his lineup, betting the strategy will pay off as Japanese firms become more open to overhauling their businesses.

Rogers’ Wolver Hill group, which already allocates about 5% of assets to an activist manager, plans to put money in a second such fund in the first half of 2018, increasing the total to about 10%, he said. He declined to identify the funds. Rogers expects more Japanese firms to reorganise their operations in the country’s drive to improve corporate governance, with his hedge fund picks profiting from the changes.