First Joltian in Japan
[Paris, September 30, 2024] Jolt Capital announces the appointment of Akira Okada as Operating Partner based in Tokyo, Japan.
Jolt Capital has identified Japan as one of the very promising countries for its international expansion outside of Europe. Japan has all the necessary ingredients (quality of engineers, appetite for deeptech and intellectual property, large technology & industrial corporations, technology-minded venture capital) but has now reached a critical point where growth capital is becoming crucial, in order to scale its expanding pool of startups.
Hiring an experienced finance professional is the first step of the expansion of Jolt Capital in Japan, which will continue throughout 2025. Akira Okada will help Jolt Capital in terms of investor relations, regulatory requirements, and hirings, as well as business development for portfolio companies.
Akira Okada, a long-standing and highly respected figure in the finance industry is a perfect match for Jolt Capital. He joins the existing group of 6 operating partners and will be part of the growing IR team at Jolt Capital.
Jean Schmitt, comments: “We are very fortunate to have met Akira while he was about to retire from his position as CIO of Manulife Japan. His experience, his dedication and is mindsets fit perfectly well with our way of operating. We are very pleased to be in Tokyo during the Japan Weeks, and to announce his appointment as the first Joltian there. We have no doubt that he will be instrumental in attracting new Japanese LPs for our upcoming fund Jolt Capital V, identify new partners, M&A opportunities and exits for our portfolio companies, as well as attract future Joltians in Japan.”
Akira Okada adds: “I’m very proud to join Jolt Capital. I believe that Japan is looking for Growth Private Equity firms like Jolt Capital as financial providers to Japanese deeptech, which will drive Japanese economic growth. I also believe that Japan is the right country for Jolt Capital to open its operations, because there are many professional institutional investors and deeptech companies with great potential. My colleagues at Jolt Capital are very professional and friendly people and I’m very excited to work with them.”
His career
Previously, Akira served as Chief Investment Officer at Manulife Japan (2013-2024), overseeing a broad range of asset classes, including Private Equity and managing Manulife Asia’s Fixed Income portfolios (2004-2013). Akira began his investment career at the Long-Term Credit Bank of Japan (1988-1998) (now SBI Shinsei Bank), where he held a role as a proprietary dealer. During this time, he traded a variety of financial products, including FX, Fixed Income, and derivatives. He is a CFA charter holder (2020) and has been an active volunteer with the CFA Institute, notably serving as a Board Director for CFA Society Japan. In this role, he organized numerous industry events, including those focused on AI. Akira holds a BA in Law and an MBA in Financial Engineering from Hitotsubashi University in Tokyo.