96-Year-Old Japanese Financial Company Announces Crypto Plans

Key Insights:

• Nomura Holdings announced they would be digitally evolving with the Digital Company.
• The company already has a footing in the digital services sector through the Future Innovation Company.
• In the future, cryptocurrencies, NFTs, etc., will be Nomura’s focus.

Japan has been leading in the crypto space with preparing for its CBDCs and when it comes to cryptocurrencies in general.

The almost $1 trillion market crypto possesses in the country is now being tapped by major Japanese corporations. The newest among the mix is Nomura Holdings.

More Crypto for Japan

In a press release Nomura Holdings, part of the Nomura Group, discussed how they would be entering the digital asset market.

Established in 1925, the corporation is known for its broker-dealer, banking services, and emphasis on the securities business.

Thus after being a part of the financial sector for so long, the company understands the importance of the crypto industry.

Since their inception, cryptocurrencies have been blooming, and today they stand at the point where they have global influence.

The ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine is the best example of how crypto has become a means of aid and control there.

Sharing similar views, Nomura President and Group CEO Kentaro Okuda called their decision to be involved with crypto the next step in its digital evolution. He added:

“Digital technology is a critical part of our strategic drive to expand our operations in private markets. The new Digital Company will lead deeper collaboration among internal and external stakeholders, accelerate our uptake of digital technologies, and enhance our client services.”

The Digital Company will be a reorganized establishment of the already existing Future Innovation Company. The latter has been operating as a digital service provider for almost three years now.

Nomura plans on building upon this to develop the business further and improve its global collaboration.

Commenting on the prospect crypto presents the press release noted:

“Digital assets such as cryptocurrencies, security tokens, and non-fungible tokens are gaining presence as a new asset class. The fusion of innovations stemming from distributed ledger technology with traditional finance is giving rise to a new range of services. By tapping into this, Nomura aims to expand its private markets businesses and broaden its services in focus areas including sustainability and decarbonization.”

The Crypto Market Today

After the spectacular recovery of 12% witnessed two days ago, the market is currently in much better shape than it was a month ago.

By the end of January, the total market cap fell to $1.5 trillion but has since managed to rise back to $1.86 trillion as of today.

Regardless it didn’t stop many major Japanese corporations from jumping into crypto. FXEmpire last week reported on one of Japan’s biggest E-commerce firm Rakuten Group launching their own NFT platform.

In addition to this, last month, the country’s largest bank, MUFG’s trust arm, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking, announced their Yen-pegged stablecoin, the ‘Progmacoin’ as well.

Thus it’s safe to say that Nomura has a secure future in the crypto industry in Japan.