Nomura Holdings is expanding its wealth management team in Singapore and Dubai after the global business turned a profit last year, 18 months ahead of target.
The Tokyo-based firm is moving to a new office in Dubai that can accommodate up to 60 staff, double the space at its previous location, Ravi Raju, head of Nomura’s international wealth business, said in an interview. Nomura is also hiring in Singapore, after beefing up staffing in Hong Kong last year, he said, without providing specific numbers.
Nomura is making a big push in private banking as part of its efforts to diversify revenue beyond investment banking and global markets. The 100-year-old firm is also benefiting from an earnings recovery and investors’ renewed appetite for Japanese assets.
“We are trying to build up our asset-gathering momentum,” said Raju, from his base in Singapore. High-net-worth entrepreneurs in countries including Indonesia and Thailand, whose families have joint ventures with Japanese companies, are inclined to work with the firm, especially when Japan is doing well, he said.
Under the current five-year plan, Nomura seeks to more than double assets under management at the global unit to US$60 billion, while relationship manager headcount is expected to rise by 50% from about 100. Half of the current managers are in Hong Kong, 35 in Singapore and 15 in Dubai, he said.
The firm hired former Citigroup Inc banker Rudolf Hitsch in 2023 to head the North Asia business, and has since been building the team, with hires from UBS Group AG last year.
See also: CIMB ready to accelerate, open to M&A
Nomura’s wealth business is much smaller than traditional private banks such as UBS or Julius Baer Group Ltd. The firm is leaning on its links to Japan and its markets platform, which make it attractive for millionaires looking to invest.
“We are seeing more interest from clients to work with a Japanese bank, and to access Japanese markets,” said Hitsch.
Sentiment toward China and Hong Kong has also improved this year, said Hitsch, amid a pick up in initial public offerings in Hong Kong and a revival in the stock market.
See also: HSBC places some bankers on short-term retention amid overhaul
Hong Kong’s total private wealth assets under management rose slightly in 2023 to about HK$9 trillion, the first annual growth since 2020, according to a report by the Private Wealth Management Association and KPMG.
Japanese brokerages are benefiting from elevated trading and dealmaking activity, along with a growing investment appetite among individual clients seeking to protect their wealth from the emergence of inflation at home. Nomura’s profit rose more than analysts expected, with net income doubling to ¥101.4 billion in the three months ended Dec 31.
