- Tokyo office opening expands Pemberton’s presence in the Japanese and Asian market
- Shintaro Mori relocates to lead the office, joined by new hires Shotaro Sese and Naoko Nozaki
- This milestone paves the way for further expansion in Asia in the near future
Tokyo, 13 October 2026 – Pemberton Asset Management, one of Europe’s leading private credit managers, today announced the official opening of its Tokyo office, strengthening its on-the-ground presence for a Japanese institutional investor base it has served since 2018.
As part of the expansion, Shotaro Sese has joined Pemberton as Executive Director, Business Development, as well as Naoko Nozaki as Head of Compliance. Based in Tokyo, Shotaro will work closely with the wider firm to develop relationships with institutional investors and support the firm’s continued growth in Japan; while Naoko will be responsible for overseeing all compliance matters in Japan, ensuring the business maintains the highest regulatory and governance standards.
Pemberton’s established regional business development and investor relations team, led by Jun Narui, Head of Asia Pacific and supported by Shintaro Mori in Business Development, who will relocate to Tokyo to lead the office, and Ayu Kurauchi in Investor Relations, has played a central role in building the firm’s presence in the region to date. The Tokyo office represents a natural next step as Japan accounts for an increasingly important share of capital allocated to private credit.
Pemberton now manages capital for a broad base of institutional investors, having continued to build its presence in the market since onboarding its first Japanese investors in 2018.
Subsequent to the opening in Tokyo, Pemberton intends to open another office in Asia in the near future, supporting the firm’s broader activity and investor relationships across the region.
The expansion comes as institutional investors across the region continue to explore opportunities and allocate capital to diversify their portfolios through European private credit. Global allocations to European private credit are estimated to almost double to >€800bn by 2030 according to Preqin.
Japan is an important market for us. Our experienced London-based team has done an excellent job building our Japanese business for nearly a decade, and now with a permanent presence in Tokyo we will be able to work even more closely with our clients in the market.
– Symon Drake-Brockman, Co-Founder and Managing Partner
Interest in private credit continues to grow among Japanese institutional investors. As allocations increase, many investors are expanding their focus beyond direct lending into other areas of private credit. Geographic diversification is becoming an increasingly important consideration, driving interest in European private credit given the depth, scale and maturity of the region’s lending markets. By strengthening our local business development capabilities, we will be better positioned to serve the evolving needs of Japanese investors and provide greater access to Pemberton’s European private credit expertise.
– Jun Narui, Head of Asia Pacific
