Buddhist priest uses stock market gains to fund temple repairs in Japan

A Japanese Buddhist priest is using stock markets and real estate investment trusts to fund temple repairs after his investment portfolio delivered returns of more than 10 per cent annually.

The priest, Yoneta, who previously worked in retail sales at Daiwa Securities Group, invested in US treasuries, Japanese real estate investment trusts and stocks including BYD and Hyundai Motor. Within two years, the portfolio helped cover part of the roughly 25 million yen (US$160,000) needed for repairs. The extra money even allowed him to expand the renovations beyond the original plan.

Temple owners turn to financial markets

Yoneta is part of a growing wave of temple owners turning to financial markets to make ends meet. He is described as an unusually finance-savvy priest because of his background in retail sales at Daiwa Securities Group.

Costs for the upkeep of ornate wooden buildings are soaring while the country's Buddhist population has dropped about 14 per cent in the last two decades. The decline has occurred as elderly adherents die and younger generations in larger cities lose their ties to religious practices.

Source: South China Morning Post