ITOCHU

Chairman and CEO Masahiro Okafuji leads the firm's strategic direction, with individual business divisions — textiles, machinery, metals, energy, chemicals, food, and finance — each maintaining their own investment committees. The general trading company structure means decisions are decentralized across operating groups rather than funneled through a central CIO office.

Berkshire Hathaway holds a 7.4% stake in ITOCHU Corporation, publicly disclosed as part of Buffett's broader bet on Japan's five largest trading houses. The position was first revealed in August 2020, when Berkshire announced it had acquired stakes of approximately 5% in each of the five firms — ITOCHU, Mitsubishi, Mitsui, Sumitomo, and Marubeni — and has since increased them (per the firm, 2023).

No. As a general trading company, or sogo shosha, ITOCHU combines operating businesses with direct equity investments across multiple sectors and geographies. It does not raise external LP capital in the manner of a private equity or venture capital fund, and its investments are typically held indefinitely rather than exited through structured fund cycles.

Confirmed real estate holdings include Wood Partners, a major US residential developer headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia; a co-investment relationship with Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd. through Mitsui Fudosan Logistics Park Inc., an industrial property vehicle in Japan; and exposure to the Japanese residential and commercial markets through Advance Residence Investment Corporation and Sun Frontier Fudousan Co., Ltd.

ITOCHU holds an interest in the Sakhalin-1 crude oil project in Russia, reflecting its broader energy commodities platform. The firm also participates in natural gas supply chains across Southeast Asia, and the Japanese government's VIP airplane logistics program relies on ITOCHU's aviation capabilities, including the IC Aero Leasing fleet.

The ITOCHU Foundation serves as the firm's primary philanthropic vehicle. Additionally, ITOCHU holds corporate director status at the Global Compact Network Japan, the local chapter of the United Nations Global Compact, signaling active engagement with sustainability and governance initiatives rather than passive charitable grant-making.

ITOCHU is structured as a general trading company with embedded operating divisions rather than a fund manager with GP/LP relationships. This permits permanent capital deployment across sectors — textiles, machinery, energy, food, finance — without redemption risk or vintage-year constraints, and enables deal sourcing through its own supply-chain networks rather than third-party intermediaries.