Nomura plans move into India next year

TOKYO, Dec 7 (Reuters) Nomura Holdings Inc. , Japan's biggest investment bank, plans to set up shop in India next year to expand its trading and corporate finance business to the fast-growing economy, Chief Operating Officer Hiroshi Toda said on Thursday.

Nomura is considering whether to create an Indian subsidiary or acquire an existing brokerage or investment bank as a platform for its expansion, he added.

''We're examining whether to do this on or own or buy someone else,'' Toda told reporters during a briefing on Nomura's global strategy.

''We believe that we'd miss an opportunity by not creating a presence in India, so we want move into the country as soon as possible.'' Toda, who heads Nomura's international business, said the firm plans to focus its global resources on three areas: services for buyout firms and hedge funds, derivatives trading and general expansion into emerging markets.

Toda acknowledged that Nomura, which made big losses at its U.S.

operation in the late 1990s, needed to work hard to close the gap with its U.S. and Europe-based global rivals.

REUTERS SBA ND1832