Nomura Incorporates Digital Asset Company in Switzerland

Nomura Holdings, a Japan-based global financial services group, announced the launch of Laser Digital Holdings, a digital asset business in Switzerland.

The new firm will be run by Steven Ashley as Chairman and Jez Mohideen as CEO.

Kentaro Okuda, CEO and President of Nomura Holdings, said on Wednesdaid: "Staying at the forefront of digital innovation is a key priority for Nomura. This is why, alongside our efforts to diversify our business, we announced earlier this year that Nomura would be setting up a new subsidiary focused [on] digital assets."

Over the coming months, Laser Digital will announce new services and product lines as it moves ahead with the staged launch of the business. As revealed earlier this year, the company will focus on three core areas: Secondary Trading, Venture Capital and Investor Products.

The first product to launch will be Laser Venture Capital, which will invest in companies in the digital ecosystem, with a focus on Decentralized Finance (DeFi), Centralized Finance (CeFi), Web3 and Blockchain infrastructure.

The investment banking giant is stepping into the field of crypto assets. Nomura had partnered with Instinet in June to launch a new digital private investment platform Instinet DealMatch. Earlier in March, the Japanese firm had announced its plan to reorganize its Future Innovation Company into a newly established Digital Company.