Nomura and Sparx to create platform to invest in unlisted companies
14/01/2021 09:40
TOKYO, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Nomura Holdings Inc 8604.T said
on Thursday it would team up with asset manager Sparx Group in
investing in unlisted companies in Japan, aiming to create a
listed platform with capacity at over 100 billion yen ($961
million).
The move comes as Japan's top brokerage and investment bank
seeks new growth in private equity under Chief Executive Kentaro
Okuda, who took the helm last year.
The alliance "aims to meet growing demand for risk money
through the private markets, particularly financing needs of
unlisted companies with growth potential," Masahiro Goto,
Nomura's global head of investment banking, said in a briefing.
It also hopes to provide individual investors with
opportunities to invest their assets in growth of unlisted
companies, he said.
After a few years of privately placed investments, a joint
asset management firm between Nomura and Sparx will aim to list
an investment corporation on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's Venture
Funds Market, eventually expanding its capacity to over 100
billion yen.
"There aren't many unicorns in Japan partly because
companies go public in early stages, and also because there
aren't many funds committed to late-stage growth companies,"
Masatoshi Fukami, Sparx Group's deputy CEO, said at the
briefing.
"We will engage in companies to help raise their corporate
value even after their IPOs," he said.
($1 = 104.0500 yen)
(Reporting by Makiko Yamazaki; editing by David Evans)
((Makiko.Yamazaki@thomsonreuters.com; +81-3-4563-2805;))