Nomura Weighs Laser Digital Sale After Fourth European Loss

By Elena Vasquez

Nomura Holdings’ European operations posted a ¥7.4 billion ($46.3 million) pre-tax loss for the quarter ended Sept. 30. The result marked their fourth consecutive quarterly loss as the Japanese brokerage weighed selling its crypto unit, Laser Digital.

What is Nomura weighing?

Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter, that Nomura has held talks with potential buyers for the Zurich-based crypto business. Financial services firm Marex Group is assessing a possible deal, although no decision has been made.

Nomura could retain the business if those discussions do not produce an agreement. That option leaves the sale open rather than treating a transfer as inevitable.

The sale remains an option, not a completed transaction.

How large is the loss?

The ¥7.4 billion pre-tax loss is a regional figure for Nomura’s European operations, not a standalone loss attributed to Laser Digital. The available results do not show how much the crypto unit contributed to that total or to the preceding three quarters.

At $46.3 million, the quarterly loss shows sustained pressure on the European business. It does not establish that Laser Digital generated the entire amount or caused each quarterly loss. The report provides no contribution breakdown.

The regional loss is clear; Laser Digital’s contribution is not.

What does Laser Digital do?

Founded in 2022 and based in Zurich, Laser Digital provides crypto trading and asset management services to institutional investors. The unit also invests in crypto startups, so its business extends beyond serving institutional clients.

Nomura had sought to curb the unit’s exposure to crypto price swings. Chief Financial Officer Hiroyuki Moriuchi said in January that the firm planned to cut trading risk while expanding asset management and custody services, which involve holding crypto on behalf of clients.

That strategy treats client-facing operations as a complement to trading rather than a substitute. A buyer would inherit both the market-sensitive activity and the planned service expansion, subject to the terms of any transaction.

Laser Digital combines trading, custody and startup investment.

Which regulated plans are advancing?

Laser Digital has pushed ahead with plans to expand its regulated operations despite the losses. Its Japanese subsidiary registered as a crypto asset exchange service provider in August, initially to supply liquidity to other crypto firms.

In May, U.S. regulators granted preliminary conditional approval for a proposed national trust bank. The bank still needs final authorization before opening, so preliminary approval does not yet permit operations.

Neither Nomura nor Marex immediately responded to CoinDesk’s request for comment. That leaves the reported buyer discussions without direct confirmation from either party, although Bloomberg cited people familiar with the matter.

Regulated expansion is advancing while ownership remains unsettled.

What would a sale change?

The reported talks do not identify a selected buyer, transaction value, ownership terms or completion date. Marex Group’s assessment indicates interest, not an agreement, while Nomura retains the option to keep the business.

The ownership question also sits apart from Laser Digital’s regulatory work. A sale would not itself resolve the outstanding requirement for final U.S. authorization of the proposed trust bank, and the report offers no timetable for either process.

The next concrete checkpoint is final U.S. authorization for the proposed national trust bank, while a sale of Laser Digital remains possible but undecided.

Ownership cannot change without an agreement, and the proposed trust bank still awaits final U.S. authorization.