sell-side exec oversees Japanese issuance in euro/global markets sold to non-Japanese investors.
Markets Media spoke with Maki Inoue, Director, Deputy Head of Capital Markets Execution, Capital Markets Group, SMBC Nikko Securities, who won Excellence in Banking award at the 2023 Women in Finance Asia Awards.
What is your day-to-day role?
I have two roles – the first one is as the deputy head of the capital markets execution group team. This involves Japanese issuance in euro/global markets sold to non-Japanese investors. The second is leading non-Japanese issuance in Japan that is sold to domestic investors.
Market conditions have been volatile; what have you found to be most challenging?
Since my main responsibility is the execution of the bond issuance project, the volatility of the market won’t have too much direct impact on me. It will impact the client coverage team more. However, when the market is volatile, there is a wider range of execution options to choose from such as public offerings and private placements.
What progress do you think women have made in financial services? How have things changed since you started?
When I started my career, women were in the minority and there were just a few female professionals in the firm. In recent years, though, I have more and more female colleagues, thanks to the effort of companies, industries, society etc. over the past few decades. However, at the same time, female employees’ consciousness, confidence and responsibilities have changed. This can be attributed to the interaction effect – this is when the effect of one variable depends on the value of another variable.
How does your firm support women and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in general?
I personally didn’t experience being treated differently just because I was a female employee. The company gave me chances and opportunities which was one of the keys in creating a good environment.
There is a plethora of awards for women in the financial sector. In your opinion, what still needs to happen before we no longer need gender-specific awards?
We see progress compared to the past decade, but I still sometimes feel that ‘women’s something’ is just the targeted number for the companies. We tend to minimize the difference between male and females and try to seek and promote the equality between the two.
