Mitsubishi UFJ retained its stronghold on the Japanese market despite a drop in sales and strong competition.

Some JPY442 billion (US$3.6 billion) was collected from 339 structured products in the first half of 2022 – a decrease of 59% in sales volume compared to the prior year period (H1 2021: JPY1,071 billion from 407 products).

Average sales of JPY1.3 billion per product were down 50% compared to H1 2021 when products sold on average JPY2.6 billion.

Sixteen issuer groups, a mixture of local banks/securities houses, Scandinavian government funding agencies, and European/US investment banks, were active during the semester (H1 2021: 15).

Mitsubishi UFJ was the number one issuer in the semester with a 21.9% share of the market – down from a 27.1% market share in Q1 2021.

Its products were issued through three different entities – MUFG Securities EMEA, Mitsubishi UFJ Securities International, and Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking – that collected a combined JPY96.7 billion from 48 structures (H1 2021: JPY290 billion from 45 products).

In second, the Swedish Export Credit Corporation (SEK), a state-owned company that provides medium- and long-term export credits, increased its market share to 17.9% (from 8.9% in H1 2021) while BNP Paribas captured 11.4% of the market in third – up 1.5% YoY.

Crédit Agricole claimed 10% market share in H1 2022. It sold 48 autocalls worth JPY44 billion that were mostly linked to a basket of indices. CA’s products were distributed via local securities firms including Monex, SBI and Tokai Tokyo.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust completed the top five. It captured 7.5% of the market (H1 2021: 5.6%) from selling 18 products worth JPY33 billion. All its products were tied to indices, including Nikkei 225, S&P 500 and Eurostoxx 50.

Barclays, Société Générale, Municipality Finance, Credit Suisse and Morgan Stanley also issued products during the period. The latter was the manufacturer behind the best-selling product of the semester, which came in the shape of ノックイン動/KI M20260610.

The five-year registered note on the Nikkei 225 and S&P 500 achieved sales of JPY23.2 billion during the subscription period. It was available via Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities, 105 Securities, and 77 Bank, with BNY Mellon acting as the derivatives manufacturer.