BANK of America chief executive officer Brian Moynihan said he’s willing to add employees in Japan as the local economy picks up after decades of deflation.
The return of price and wage growth, rising interest rates and corporate reforms are spurring activity in the country, Moynihan said in a Bloomberg Television interview in Tokyo on Friday.
“We’ll hire internal people, but if there’s not enough, we’ll bring people from around the world,” he said. “It’s an exciting city to live in, Tokyo, so it’s not hard to get people to come here.”
Moynihan joins a chorus of financial industry leaders who have lauded Japan’s revival as companies respond to pressure to boost value for shareholders.
The return of inflation has prompted more households to consider investing their savings, presenting opportunities for asset managers and brokers.
“The excitement overall is the changes in interest-rate structure, inflation from a country that had no inflation for 30 years,” Moynihan said. “That changes people’s attitudes.”
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The Charlotte, North Carolina-based bank has about 800 employees in Japan, working in areas including corporate and investment banking and treasury services, Moynihan said.
Japan’s recent stock-market renaissance after decades of dour returns has stoked demand around the world for information about companies in the country.
Bank of America has been strengthening its Japan analysis offerings as a result, research head Shinichiro Nakamura told Bloomberg last July.
The bank recently appointed a new vice-chairman in Tokyo, naming former Japanese finance ministry official Takuji Tanaka to help expand the firm’s client base and improve governance at its local securities subsidiary. BLOOMBERG
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