Nomura seeks to enter virtual assets market targeting Japanese institutional investors

Nomura, Japan's largest investment banking group, is aiming at the virtual asset (cryptocurrency) market for Japanese institutional investors through its subsidiary Laser Digital.

On the 3rd (local time), according to Cointelegraph, a Laser Digital spokesperson said, "We are currently conducting pre-consultation with the Japan Financial Services Agency (FSA) and plan to provide virtual asset trading services for institutions through a license application." However, the timing of the application has not yet been decided, and it said this may vary depending on the outcome of the consultations.

If approved, Laser Digital will provide broker-dealer services to traditional financial firms and cryptocurrency exchanges in Japan. Laser Digital is a Swiss entity under Nomura Holdings, and this move is interpreted as a strategy to respond to the surging institutional demand in Japan.

This move coincides with a trend of major Japanese securities firms rolling out virtual asset-related services. Earlier, large Japanese securities firm Daiwa Securities Group launched a cryptocurrency lending service that allows borrowing yen using Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) as collateral.