Nomura explores sale of crypto unit Laser Digital: report

Nomura Holdings is exploring a possible sale of its cryptocurrency subsidiary Laser Digital, Cointelegraph reported, citing Bloomberg. The Japanese financial services group has reportedly discussed the business with potential buyers, including Marex Group, but could still decide to retain it.

The reported discussions follow a fourth consecutive quarterly loss for Nomura’s European operations. However, Cointelegraph said Nomura had not disclosed whether Switzerland-headquartered Laser Digital contributed to that regional result, leaving its individual financial performance unclear.

Nomura established Laser Digital in September 2022 as a dedicated digital-assets business. Its launch announcement described a strategy built around secondary trading, venture capital and investor products, drawing on the parent company’s institutional relationships and financial-market expertise.

The choice of Switzerland was deliberate, according to Nomura’s original announcement. The group cited the country’s established regulatory framework for digital assets and blockchain projects, alongside its pool of specialist talent, as reasons for incorporating the holding company there.

Laser Digital was conceived as more than a cryptocurrency trading operation. Nomura’s launch plans also included venture investments in businesses developing decentralized finance, centralized finance, Web3 and blockchain infrastructure, placing the subsidiary across several parts of the digital-asset industry rather than a single product line.

The business subsequently developed an international footprint. In its corporate reporting, Nomura described Laser Digital offices in Zurich, London, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Tokyo, with activities spanning digital-asset trading, solutions, asset management and venture capital for institutional investors. That breadth provides context for the business whose ownership is now reportedly under discussion.

Regulatory permissions have been an important part of that expansion. In August 2023, Nomura announced that Laser Digital’s Dubai entity had received an operating licence from the local Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority, permitting virtual-asset broker-dealer services and management and investment services. The announcement linked that approval to plans for institutional over-the-counter trading and investment products.

Those earlier disclosures show why a potential sale would represent a change in ownership strategy for a business Nomura created to develop new financial services. They do not, however, establish the rationale for the reported talks or demonstrate that regional losses were caused by the subsidiary. A possible transaction and the performance of Nomura’s wider European operations remain distinct questions.

The next issue is whether exploratory discussions develop into a transaction or Nomura elects to keep Laser Digital. The available sale reporting does not identify an agreed buyer, price or completion timetable. Until a definitive announcement, the outcome remains uncertain, and the reported talks should not be treated as a completed disposal.