Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) has called for applications from asset managers for non-Japanese Bonds and has issued a request for information on fund-of-fund managers for emerging markets (EM) infrastructure.

Under the fixed income mandate, the fund is looking for managers that undertake both active and passive investment in foreign bonds.

For active investment, GPIF lists indices including Bloomberg Barclays Euro Aggregate Bond Index and the JP Morgan GBI-EM Global Diversified Index as investment benchmarks.

It said it would also accept “any other benchmark (unhedged in Japanese yen terms) in accordance with investment product proposals”.

For passive Investment, GPIF would assign the benchmark.

Passive investment managers are being asked to provide either the track record of FTSE World Government Bond Index (ex-JPY Unhedged/in JPY terms) or another non-Japanese Bond benchmark.

GPIF did not set a deadline for the offering. “We will review applications as needed,” it said.

“Upon consideration of diversifying passive fund benchmarks, we will start reviewing passive fund managers on 22 May 2020.

“We seek asset managers with broad expertise and access to various benchmarks, such as corporate high yield indices, EM-related indices (and) aggregate indices.”

At the beginning fo the month, the fund increase its allocation to foreign fixed income by 10% as it planned to cut back on its exposure to domestic government bonds for the next five years.

For EM infrastructure, the ¥158trn (€1.35trn) pension fund said it is considering appointing a specialist fund-of-funds manager as part of its global infrastructure strategy.

GPIF said it “expects to receive useful information from managers in the relevant market in order to develop an idea of potential investment in the emerging markets going forward”.

It added: “GPIF maintains the key strategy to invest mainly in core infrastructure, which will yield stable income”.

GPIF is looking for a fund-of-funds arrangement but it said it “will also accept information” on other investment schemes.

More than two years ago, GPIF appointed StepStone Infrastructure & Real Assets as its global fund-of-funds manager. Earlier this year, it invested in Brussels Airport through the mandate.

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