iShares Japan Govt Bond UCITS ETF

What this fund is

iShares Japan Govt Bond UCITS ETF is an exchange-traded fund (ETF) from iShares, traded under the ticker JGBUX (ISIN IE000VAOK4J4). It lets you buy a basket of holdings in a single trade, spreading your money across them rather than one company. In plain terms it is about lending to governments and companies in return for regular interest, which tends to be steadier than shares but grows more slowly, spread across its target market. Its largest holdings include JAPAN (GOVERNMENT OF) 10YR #350, JAPAN (GOVERNMENT OF) 10YR #366 and JAPAN (GOVERNMENT OF) 10YR #360. With about 297 holdings (the ten largest ≈ 11.3%), your money is diversified rather than concentrated in a handful of names.

Its biggest country exposures are ~99.9% Japan, ~0% European Union and ~0% United Kingdom. Its heaviest sectors are ~99.8% Government and ~0.1% Other. Funds like this are often used as the steadier, lower-swing part of a portfolio — the ballast that cushions the ups and downs of shares. Its ongoing charge (TER) is 0.09% a year — about €9 a year on a €10,000 holding, taken automatically from the fund. It is an accumulating share class: dividends are rolled straight back in, compounding your returns rather than landing in your account as cash.

It holds the underlying investments directly (physical replication); it is domiciled in Ireland and UCITS-regulated, a European standard built to protect everyday investors and trades in USD. It launched in 2023. As with any investment, its value can go down as well as up, and past performance is not a guide to future results. (Fund data sourced from iShares.)