Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking launched an actively managed exchange-traded fund on the New York Stock Exchange Wednesday, marking the Japanese lender’s entry into the competitive U.S. ETF market with a focus on small-capitalization stocks.
The fund charges a 0.85% management fee and represents what the company claims is the first actively managed ETF dedicated to Japanese small-cap equities, Nikkei reported. The strategy aims to outperform the Topix index through independent stock selection rather than passive tracking.
The launch comes as Japanese financial institutions seek to expand their asset management operations abroad while capitalizing on growing international interest in Japan’s equity markets beyond the country’s well-known large corporations.
Mitsubishi UFJ Trust has partnered with Clearbrook Investment Consulting to manage the fund, which targets overseas investors looking for exposure to Japan’s smaller companies that often receive less attention from international money managers.
The timing coincides with renewed foreign investor appetite for Japanese equities, though small-cap stocks typically carry higher volatility and liquidity risks compared to their large-cap counterparts. The fund’s success will largely depend on whether active management can justify the relatively high fee structure in a market increasingly dominated by low-cost passive strategies.
The ETF represents Mitsubishi UFJ Trust’s broader strategy to grow its U.S. asset management business and compete with established players in the Japanese equity space.
