Nomura rides opening-up for biz expansion

MNC to make its China JV fully licensed brokerage to better serve more clients

The consistent opening of China's financial markets has consolidated the strategies of international financial institutions in expanding their footprint in the country, serving domestic clients and integrating local businesses into the global market.

The view was from Toshiyasu Iiyama, executive managing director of Nomura Holdings Inc and chairman of Nomura's China Committee, in a virtual interview with China Daily from Tokyo a week earlier as the COVID-19 pandemic restricted travel.

The pandemic slowed down a little bit the operations of Nomura Orient International Securities, Nomura's joint venture in China established in 2019. It is the first foreign majority-owned securities company with a Japanese background in the Chinese mainland.

Rapid reaction through online technologies helped the new company limit the negative impact of the pandemic and later it opened up new branch offices in Beijing and Shenzhen, Guangdong province, in addition to Shanghai.

"A good thing we have observed is that the Chinese opening-up policy has remained consistent and is not slowing down or backing off at all," said Iiyama, who expected the Chinese government to gradually accelerate the liberalization of cross-border capital movements as well.

Uncertainties from COVID-19 did not stop the Japanese financial group's expansion in China, and from entering the country's fast growing wealth management market "is only the beginning", the executive said.

"In the future, Nomura Orient International will apply for an investment banking license, aiming to become a fully licensed brokerage and provide more diversified and comprehensive services to high-net-worth clients," Iiyama said.

The JV aims to become a comprehensive securities services financial platform, as a core pillar of Nomura Group's strategy in Asia excluding Japan, he said.

While China is gradually becoming an older society, a similar process has happened in Japan, with individuals planning to diversify their investment portfolios and looking for more opportunities in the global market.

Improving the social security system is not only the government's duty, but also needs support from the private sector as well as international professional institutions, so it is important to further free up capital flows going in or out of the country, Iiyama said.