1. Overview

    The Worldwide Japanese Fund aims to maximise total return principally through investment in equity securities which are listed, traded or dealt on Regulated Markets in Japan. The Fund’s share price can be volatile due to movements in the prices of the underlying holdings and the basis on which the Fund is priced.

    Performance & Portfolio

    Select currency
    Cumulative Performance
    Created with Highstock 4.2.2Zoom10 Years5 Years3 Years1 YearQuarterWorldwide Japanese Fund - B Acc JPY (in JPY)TOPIXJan 2016Jan 2017Jan 2018Jan 2019Jan 2020Jan 2021Jan 2022Jan 2023Jan 2024Jan 20252014201520162017201820192020202120222023202450.075.0100.0125.0150.0175.0200.0225.0250.0

    Rebased to 100 at the start date of this chart.

    B Acc JPY share class launched on 18 August 2014.

    Past performance is not a guide to future returns. The value of your investment may go down as well as up, and you may not get back the amount you invested.

    Baillie Gifford operates a single swinging price for the Fund and, therefore, may apply a dilution adjustment to the price to protect long-term investors from the costs associated with buying and selling underlying investments that result from other investors joining or leaving the Fund. This adjustment will affect relative performance, either positively or negatively.

    Share class performance converted to chosen currency.

    Source: Baillie Gifford & Co, BBH, Revolution, relevant underlying index provider.

    Annualised Periodic Performance 31/03/2025
    • Month-end
    • Quarter-end
    • Calendar Year
    • 12 Month Performance
    1 Month3 MonthsYTD1 Year3 Years5 Years10 YearsSince Inception
    Fund - B Acc - JPY (in JPY) -2.04 -3.03 -3.03 -6.60 3.90 10.02 5.43 7.47
    TOPIX 0.22 -3.44 -3.44 -1.55 13.75 16.36 8.07 9.74
    Created with Highcharts 4.2.2% p.a.-2.04%-3.03%-3.03%-6.60%3.90%10.02%5.43%7.47%0.22%-3.44%-3.44%-1.55%13.75%16.36%8.07%9.74%Fund - B Acc - JPY (in JPY)TOPIX-10-505101520
    1 Month3 MonthsYTD1 Year3 Years5 Years10 YearsSince Inception

    Performance figures of periods of one year or less have not been annualised.

    1 MonthYTD1 Year3 Years5 Years10 YearsSince Inception
    Fund - B Acc - JPY (in JPY) -2.04 -3.03 -6.60 3.90 10.02 5.43 7.47
    TOPIX 0.22 -3.44 -1.55 13.75 16.36 8.07 9.74

    Performance figures of periods of one year or less have not been annualised.

    2015201620172018201920202021202220232024
    Fund - B Acc - JPY (in JPY) 7.74 3.98 30.76 -16.63 17.87 21.35 7.53 -19.69 17.81 10.04
    TOPIX 12.06 0.31 22.23 -15.97 18.12 7.39 12.74 -2.45 28.26 20.45

    Performance figures of periods of one year or less have not been annualised.

    31/03/15-31/03/1631/03/16-31/03/1731/03/17-31/03/1831/03/18-31/03/1931/03/19-31/03/2031/03/20-31/03/2131/03/21-31/03/2231/03/22-31/03/2331/03/23-31/03/2431/03/24-31/03/25
    Fund - B Acc - JPY (in JPY) -15.56 21.29 23.55 -3.08 -14.18 59.25 -9.71 -4.02 25.12 -6.60
    TOPIX -10.82 14.69 15.87 -5.04 -9.50 42.13 1.99 5.81 41.34 -1.55

     

     

    Top Ten Holdings - 31/03/2025

    Fund %
    1 Sony 7.1%
    2 SoftBank Group 5.1%
    3 SBI Holdings 4.4%
    4 Sumitomo Mitsui Trust 4.2%
    5 Keyence 3.9%
    6 MS&AD Insurance 3.8%
    7 Recruit Holdings 3.5%
    8 Rakuten 3.1%
    9 Nintendo 2.9%
    10 GMO Internet 2.8%
    Total 41.0%
    Sector Analysis 31/03/2025
    Created with Highcharts 4.2.212345

    Fund %

    • 1 Manufacturing 50.46
    • 2 Transport And Communications 14.79
    • 3 Finance & Insurance 14.29
    • 4 Services 11.86
    • 5 Commerce 8.60
    • 6 Real Estate 0.84
    • 7 Cash -0.84
    • Total 100.00

    Totals may not sum due to rounding.

    As well as cash in the bank, this balance includes unsettled cash flows arising from both shareholder flows and outstanding trades. Therefore, a negative balance may arise from timing differences between shareholder flows and security trading and does not necessarily represent a bank overdraft.

    Managers

    Donald Farquharson

    Donald is head of the Japanese Equities Team, which he joined in 2008. He is currently the co-manager for the Japan Growth Strategy, which he has run since its inception, and is also a member of the International Alpha Portfolio Construction Group. Donald joined Baillie Gifford in 2008 and became a partner of the firm in 2017. Donald has over 35 years of investment experience, almost all dedicated to Japan having worked in Tokyo, London and now Edinburgh. Prior to Baillie Gifford, Donald spent 20 years working for Schroders as a Japanese specialist and latterly Head of the Pan Pacific Equity Team. Between 1991 and 1995, he headed Schroders’ research team in Tokyo. He graduated with MA (Hons) in Arabic Studies from the University of St Andrews in 1987 and is a CFA Charterholder.

    Tolibjon Tursunov

    Tolibjon is a founding member of the Baillie Gifford Islamic Equities Strategy and is a co-manager of the Japan Growth Strategy. He joined Baillie Gifford in 2011 and has spent time working on regional as well as large and small cap global equities teams. Prior to joining Baillie Gifford, he worked in the corporate finance department of an FMCG company, before founding a price comparison website in Central Asia covering insurance, banking, and telecom sectors. Tolibjon graduated LLB in Law from Queen Mary University of London in 2008 and is a CFA Charterholder.

    How to Invest

    You can invest in a range of our funds via a number of fund platforms and supermarkets. Certain share classes are available for investment via a number of platforms. Please see the links opposite.

    Baillie Gifford does not sponsor, maintain or have any control over the content of any other websites.

    Therefore, we are not responsible for the adequacy or accuracy of any of the information you may view, nor do we undertake to ensure successful transmission to any linked website.

    How to Invest

    Professional Investor Enquiries

    For further information on the funds, including availability and investment options, please contact our local distributor Volcom Capital.

    Professional Investor Enquiries

    Documents

    You can access any literature about the Fund here, either by downloading or requesting a copy by post (where available).

    To download any document you will need Adobe Reader. Please note that we can now provide you with Braille and audio transcriptions of our literature on request. It may take up to 10 days for the transcription to be completed dependent on the size of the document.

    Philosophy and process documents

    Quarterly investor reports

    PRIIPs key information document

    PRIIPs performance disclosures

    Further Information

    COMPLAINTS CONTACT DETAILS
    In the first instance, clients should contact their normal Client Contact with any concerns. Alternatively, or for those clients who do not have a direct client contact assigned, complaints can be emailed to Baillie Gifford’s Compliance Department at: InstitutionalComplaints@bailliegifford.com. A summary document which contains details on Baillie Gifford’s complaints management policy is available upon request. All material complaints are recorded in an in-house incident management system and are escalated to, and dealt with by, members of staff of suitable seniority, independent of the area from which the matter arose.

    Risks

    Investment markets can go down as well as up and market conditions can change rapidly. The value of an investment in the Fund, and any income from it, can fall as well as rise and investors may not get back the amount invested.

    The specific risks associated with the Fund include:

    Custody

    Custody of assets involves a risk of loss if a custodian becomes insolvent or breaches duties of care.

    Single Country

    The Fund’s exposure to a single market and currency may increase share price movements.

    Foreign Currency

    The Fund has exposure to a foreign currency and changes in the rate of exchange will cause the value of any investment, and income from it, to fall as well as rise and you may not get back the amount invested.

    Volatility

    The Fund’s share price can be volatile due to movements in the prices of the underlying holdings and the basis on which the Fund is priced.

    Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)

    The Fund's approach to Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) means it cannot invest in certain sectors and companies. The universe of available investments will be more limited than other funds that do not apply such criteria/ exclusions, therefore the Fund may have different returns than a fund which has no such restrictions. Data used to apply the criteria may be provided by third party sources and is based on backward-looking analysis and the subjective nature of non-financial criteria means a wide variety of outcomes are possible. There is a risk that data provided may not adequately address the underlying detail around material non-financial considerations.

    Please consider all of the characteristics and objectives of the fund as described in the Key Information Document (KID) and prospectus before making a decision to invest in the Fund. For more information on how sustainability issues, such as climate change are considered, see bailliegifford.com.

    Further Details

    Further details of the risks associated with investing in the Fund can be found in the Key Information Document (KID), or the Prospectus. Copies of both the KID and Prospectus are available at bailliegifford.com.

    Definitions

    Active Share: A measure of the Fund's overlap with the benchmark. An active share of 100 indicates no overlap with the benchmark and an active share of zero indicates a portfolio that tracks the benchmark.

     

    Important Information

    Baillie Gifford Overseas Limited provides investment management and advisory services to non-UK clients and is authorised and regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority. Baillie Gifford Overseas Limited is not licensed under the Regulation of Investment Advising, Investment Marketing and Portfolio Management Law, 5755-1995 (the “Advice Law”) and does not carry insurance pursuant to the Advice Law.

    Baillie Gifford Overseas Limited markets and distributes Baillie Gifford’s range of collective investment schemes to Qualified Clients and Qualified Investors in Israel, as listed in the First Addendum to the [Regulation of Investment Advising, Investment Marketing and Portfolio Management Law, 5755-1995 (the “Advice Law”)]/[Advice Law] and in the First Addendum to the [Israel Securities Law, 5728-1968 (the “Securities Law”)]/ [Securities Law]. Detailed disclosure of the collective investment schemes can be found within this website and in the relevant scheme prospectus.

    Baillie Gifford Overseas Limited does not provide investment advice. If you are in any doubt about whether an investment is suitable, you should seek independent advice.

    No action has been or will be taken in Israel that would permit a public offering or distribution of the Funds mentioned in this website to the public in Israel. This website and the Funds mentioned herein have not been approved by the Israeli Securities Authority (the “ISA”). In addition, the Funds mentioned in this website are not regulated under the provisions of Israel’s Joint Investment Trusts law, 5754-1994 (the “Joint Investment Trusts Law”). This website and the Funds mentioned herein will only be distributed to Israeli residents in reliance on an exemption from any advice or marketing restrictions [in a manner that will not constitute “an offer to the public” under sections 15 and 15a of]/[in reliance on an exemption from the prospectus requirements under] the Israel Securities Law, 5728-1968 (the “Securities Law”) or the Joint Investment Trusts Law, and any guidelines, pronouncements or rulings issued from time to time by the ISA as applicable.