Daiwa Securities Group is resuming an expansion of its mergers and acquisitions business to capitalize on a dealmaking boom at home and lift its standing abroad.
Japan¡¯s second-largest brokerage has restarted hiring merger advisory staff overseas and is boosting a team of cross-border deal specialists, CEO Akihiko Ogino said in an interview.
The comments mark a shift from Ogino¡¯s more cautious posture six months ago, when he said he ordered a pause on such hiring after U.S. President Donald Trump¡¯s tariff announcements clouded the outlook for deals. Since then, Daiwa has reported strong growth in M&A-related earnings thanks to a jump in transactions in Japan.
¡°There practically isn¡¯t a single day without some kind of corporate action taking place as far as the Japanese market is concerned,¡± Ogino said. ¡°It is truly vibrant.¡±
Daiwa aims to become one of the world¡¯s top five advisers for midcap M&A, which it defines as those worth $500 million or less, he said. The firm is 15th for such transactions this year, data shows.
The Tokyo-based brokerage is considering raising its revenue target for its mergers advisory business for the year ending March 2031 to ?100 billion ($634 million) from the current ?70 billion, Ogino said.
Daiwa remains on course to increase the number of its M&A bankers worldwide to 900 by March 2031, from about 640 currently, he said. It launched a four-member team focusing on cross-border transactions in April, and has recently added two more to the group.
Commenting on overseas strategies, Ogino said the company is ¡°always looking¡± at potential investments and acquisitions in India for its wealth management push. He also emphasized his commitment to Daiwa¡¯s mainland China business, despite tensions triggered by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi¡¯s remarks on Taiwan.
Ogino said he will seek to build a ¡°sustainable presence¡± in China by reallocating people to areas with the best earnings potential. ¡°Of course there is a lot being said on the political front, but I don¡¯t think either side is going to suddenly cut economic ties.¡±
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