In recent years, investors' demands on management have evolved with the introduction of the Stewardship Code and tighter governance; companies that emphasize ROE and ROIC and achieve sustainable growth attract medium- to long-term investors, while companies that disregard investment efficiency can become targets of activists.

Through the bubble era, Japanese companies tended to prioritize growth, with profitability and investment efficiency second. After the bubble burst, as the engines of growth slowed, many companies suffered from excess capacity, employment and debt, and their profit margins deteriorated. As a result from the 1990s many companies changed course and restructured, including headcount reductions.
The Japanese economy has entered a recovery phase since Abenomics, but in many cases managements have been unable to take advantage of their strong balance sheets and improved profitability due to the aftereffects of the bubble economy, maintaining inefficient balance sheets that have depressed returns and prevented them from unleashing their true corporate value potential.

A cash-rich balance sheet allows for investment, including M&A, both domestically and internationally. Companies that are developing new businesses including overseas expansion are deploying capital in high-growth opportunities on a global basis to further increase earnings. In other words, it is no exaggeration to say that it is the mission of top management to optimize capital allocation in order to increase corporate value.

VISTA helps companies achieve sustainable growth and increase their corporate value over the medium to long term by strengthening the financial literacy of top management and their involvement in the capital markets.