BNY Mellon Investment Management Launches Dreyfus Japan Womenomics Fund

NEW YORK,, Sept. 18, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- BNY Mellon Investment Management today announced the launch of Dreyfus Japan Womenomics Fund (the "Fund"). The Fund, which seeks long-term capital growth, is sub-advised by BNY Mellon Asset Management Japan Limited ("BNYMAM Japan"), an affiliate of the Fund's investment adviser, The Dreyfus Corporation ("Dreyfus"), BNY Mellon's U.S. Fund Platform.

The Fund normally will invest in Japanese-listed companies that BNYMAM Japan believes will benefit from the Japanese Government's "Womenomics" initiative, which seeks to enhance economic growth in Japan through improved gender parity in the workforce. The Womenomics initiative includes efforts to ease barriers to female employment outside the home, promote women to leadership positions, and close the gender pay gap.  Recent government policies to support the initiative have included the labor reform law, expanding day care facilities, and a law requiring action plans from companies of a certain size to increase female employment.

"Dreyfus Japan Womenomics Fund is BNY Mellon's first U.S. thematic fund offering investors direct exposure to the improving Japanese economy," said Alicia Levine, Chief Strategist, BNY Mellon Investment Management. "With the increase in investor demand for strategies tied to unleashing female potential and improved gender diversity, the Dreyfus Japan Womenomics Fund offers a solution for growth-seeking investors in one of the only nations with a sustained program in place to advance the economic opportunity of women in society."

BNYMAM Japan will use an investment process that combines fundamental analysis and security valuation with the Womenomics growth theme. Using fundamental, bottom-up research with a mid- to long-term view, BNYMAM Japan will aim to select individual stocks that have growth potential, the ability to deliver long-term earnings above market expectations, and attractive valuations. BNYMAM Japan will invest in Japanese companies it believes will benefit from the Womenomics initiative, including those that actively hire and promote women, provide products or services, which target women, and benefit directly or indirectly from the economic potential of improved gender parity in the workforce.

The Fund is managed by five members of the Japan Equity Investment Division at BNYMAM Japan; Makiko Togari, the Fund's lead portfolio manager, Miyuki Kashima, Masafumi Oshiden, Kazuya Kurosawa, and Takashi Shimoyanagita. The Fund is not managed to a benchmark index, nor will the Fund's portfolio have the same characteristics as its designated broad-based securities market index, TOPIX® Total Return Index, a market capitalization-weighted index consisting of all stocks traded on the First Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

"Using Womenomics as a filter, the Fund seeks to offer investors dual exposure to a measurable secular growth theme and Japan's economic recovery," said Kashima. "The Fund's investment criteria are derived from data we believe consistently demonstrate the escalating power of the female consumer as women become a larger percentage of the labor force and the outperformance of companies that employ and promote more women. The Fund seeks to offer investors a differentiated way to access the Japanese market through an active, fundamental approach to isolate growth companies."

The Fund offers Class A (DJWAX), Class C (DJWCX), and Class I (DJWIX) shares with a minimum initial investment of $1,000. The Fund also offers Class Y (DJWYX) shares generally with a minimum initial investment of $1,000,000. Additional information regarding the Fund can be found on the Dreyfus website and on the product page here.

Key Risk Considerations
Equities are subject to market, market sector, market liquidity, issuer and investment style risks to varying degrees. Investing in foreign denominated and/or domiciled securities involves special risks, including changes in currency exchange rates, political, economic, and social instability, limited company information, differing auditing and legal standards and less market liquidity. These risks generally are greater with emerging market countries. Specifically, the fund's performance will be influenced by political, social and economic factors affecting Japan.  As a result, the fund's performance could be more volatile than that of more geographically diversified mutual funds.   In addition, the sub-adviser's investment approach may cause the fund to perform differently than mutual funds that invest in equity securities of Japanese companies, but that do not take into consideration the initiative in Japan to unlock economic potential from an increased female labor and consumer base of women when selecting stocks for investment. This investment approach – investing in companies the fund's sub-adviser determines will benefit from the Womenomics initiative − may result in the fund forgoing opportunities to buy certain securities when it might otherwise be advantageous to do so, or selling securities when it might otherwise be disadvantageous for the fund to do so.

About Dreyfus
As part of BNY Mellon Investment Management, Dreyfus provides individuals, financial advisors, and institutional clients with investment solutions in the U.S. The firm provides a broad range of investment solutions from BNY Mellon's global network of world-class investment managers, which includes asset classes spanning global, international and domestic equity, fixed income, alternatives, retirement and cash management strategies. Dreyfus offers 149 mutual funds with AUM of $252.6 billion across long only and money market strategies as of June 30, 2018. Operating since 1951, Dreyfus is one of the first U.S. mutual fund investment companies.

About BNY Mellon Asset Management Japan Limited
BNY Mellon has enjoyed an established presence in Japan since 1970. In 1998, BNY Mellon Asset Management Japan launched a full range of traditional and alternative investment strategies.  Today, Asset Management Japan manages approximately U.S. $30 billion on behalf of Japanese pension, financial institutions and retail clients. 

About BNY Mellon Investment Management
BNY Mellon Investment Management is one of the world's leading investment management organizations and one of the top U.S. wealth managers, with $1.8 trillion in assets under management as of June 30, 2018. It encompasses BNY Mellon's affiliated investment management firms, wealth management services and global distribution companies. BNY Mellon Investment Management is a division of BNY Mellon, which has $33.6 trillion in assets under custody and/or administration as of June 30, 2018. BNY Mellon can act as a single point of contact for clients looking to create, trade, hold, manage, service, distribute or restructure investments. BNY Mellon is the corporate brand of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (NYSE: BK). Additional information is available on www.bnymellon.com. Follow us on Twitter @BNYMellon or visit our newsroom at www.bnymellon.com/newsroom for the latest company news.

This press release is qualified for issuance in the U.S. only and is for informational purposes only. This material should not be considered as investment advice or a recommendation of any particular investment, strategy, investment manager or account arrangement.  It does not constitute an offer or solicitation of securities or investment services or an endorsement thereof in any jurisdiction or in any circumstance in which such offer or solicitation is unlawful or not authorized.  MBSC Securities Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dreyfus, serves as distributor of the Fund. Dreyfus, BNY Mellon Asset Management Japan Limited, and MBSC Securities Corporation are affiliated with The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation.

Investors should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses of a mutual fund carefully before investing.  To obtain a prospectus, or a summary prospectus, if available, that contains this and other information about the fund, contact your financial advisor or visit dreyfus.com. Read the prospectus carefully before investing.

Ben Tanner
(212) 635 8676
[email protected]

SOURCE BNY Mellon Investment Management