Daiichi Life Group has been stepping into bankers’ shoes and contacting companies directly to see if they want to issue bonds, in an unusual investment tactic for an insurer.

The Tokyo-based firm — Japan’s largest listed life insurance group — has been approaching dozens of companies that have never issued bonds or only rarely done so, proposing that it will become a core buyer if they tap the market, according to Kazuyuki Shigemoto, its managing executive officer.

Investors such as Shigemoto are looking for extra returns as Japan’s benchmark bond yields climb to three-decade highs. One option is corporate debt that offers premiums over sovereign bonds. More issuance by weaker companies may attract foreign investors, who have long called on Japan to establish a junk bond market that offers higher yields in exchange for more risk.