Nomura's results suggest bonuses there will be mixed
While America’s major banks have reported Q1 results – and European banks will do so next week – Japan’s banks are now reporting their full year results, for a financial year that ends 31 March. The first, to do so, which published earlier today, is Nomura.
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Nomura did well. Its wholesale division, which covers both investment banking and sales & trading functions, notched its highest ever annual revenue and income before tax ever since the division’s establishment in 2010.
The superb figures highlighted mixed fates, however. Nomura's equities traders had a blockbuster year, with revenue up 22% for the year ending March 2026 on the previous period. Nomura's fixed Income revenues were up just 2%, however. Investment banking revenues were up by 6%.
Within the equities team, the bank crediting Asian traders in particular with success, both inside and outside of Japan.
In fixed income, performance varied. Nomura's macro revenues declined in the Americas, but rose in Japan. Both foreign exchange and emerging markets team performed well globally.
It was a particularly strong last quarter for the firm’s Asian bankers and traders, especially in Japan. At the end of last quarter, Japanese teams were up just 0.6% on the previous 9m period, and Asian teams outside of Japan were up by 1%. In the last quarter, revenues skyrocketed on last year’s Q4, by 62% in Japan and 29% in the rest of Asia. All in all, the year ended moderately up on 2024.
Next year’s results might be a bit different. The firm has hired heavily recently, and it appears to be making a serious foray into commodities especially, with Herr Ling Yeo, former head of FX and commodities at ANZ, joining the firm in Singapore earlier this week. It also hired Aleksander Ganchev in London for its precious metals team. The only missing piece currently is Anshu Sidher, former head of global markets at ANZ and a friend of Ling Yeo’s, who left ANZ in September last year.
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