Kaguya Komatsu Becomes First Female CEO at JPMorgan Asset Management Japan

JPMorgan Asset Management Japan has appointed Kaguya Komatsu as its Chief Executive Officer, marking the first time a woman has held the position. The announcement represents a step forward in addressing Japan’s persistent gender gap in leadership roles and wages.

Komatsu, who previously led the funds and institutional business in Japan, will officially assume the role on March 1, according to a press release issued by JPMorgan AM on Monday. She will succeed Shoichi Okoshi, who is set to transition to the role of chairman.

Having joined JPMorgan in 2011, Komatsu has overseen the institutional investor and investment trust businesses since 2024. Her career also includes roles at Fitch Ratings Japan, Merrill Lynch Japan Securities, Deutsche Securities, and Japan’s Financial Services Agency.

Japan continues to lag behind other advanced economies in female representation in leadership roles, ranking 118th out of 146 countries in the World Economic Forum’s gender equity rankings. In the corporate sector, only 4% of companies listed on the Nikkei 225 have women in C-suite positions such as CEO or CFO, compared to over 30% for major indexes in Europe and the U.S., according to a report by Bloomberg Intelligence strategists Yasutake Homma and Adeline Diab.

The gender wage gap in Japan remains the largest among advanced economies, with women earning, on average, 79% of what men earn, highlighting the significant challenges still facing the nation in achieving gender parity.

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