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.
91AV原创 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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