Japan's Pension Fund Association lifts alternative holdings to about $19bn

Japan's Pension Fund Association lifted its alternative investment holdings to about ¥3trn ($19bn) in the year to March 2026, according to its latest pension investment report covered by Alternative Credit Investor.

Alternatives reached 21.3 per cent of the basic pension portfolio, up from 20 per cent a year earlier, while the combined corporate pension portfolio's alternative weight rose to 31.7 per cent from 27 per cent. Total alternative holdings increased about 14 per cent from ¥2.63trn in March 2025, and overall pension assets grew ¥838.6bn to ¥13.76trn ($87bn).

The report gives the aggregate alternative increase rather than an asset-class split, so the amount reaching debt strategies is not disclosed. The alternatives book spans private equity, hedge funds, real estate, infrastructure and income-focused strategies; the income-focused bucket includes infrastructure debt, direct lending, asset leasing and other alternative financing arrangements.

The disclosures report holdings rather than commitments, so part of the 14 per cent increase may reflect valuation gains rather than new private credit demand.