Japan-based financial services group Nomura has extended its international wealth management business by opening new premises at the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), a financial hub in the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia (MEASA).
The company’s international wealth management division will mainly cater to high-net-worth individuals, external asset managers, and single family offices in the UAE.
It will also serve the wider Middle East region, including the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), North Africa, and Levant countries.
Through the expansion, Nomura’s international wealth management joins a DIFC ecosystem of more than 300 wealth and asset management firms, constituting a $500bn asset management market in terms of assets under management.
Nomura international wealth management head Ravi Raju said: “DIFC has long established itself as the Middle East’s de facto financial hub and international financial centre.
“Our on-the-ground presence here will help us better tap into the vast pools of wealth in this region, to complement our strategy of serving clients across Greater China and Southeast Asia as well as the global NRI segment.”
In 2022, Nomura announced that it would open a branch of Nomura Singapore in DIFC to grow its client franchise and improve the footprint of its relationship managers.
The Japanese company has since secured a Category 4 licence from the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), which is the independent regulator overseeing financial services conducted within or from the DIFC.
Nomura’s expansion into DIFC bolsters the latter’s commitment to delivering a conducive environment for businesses in the region that will boost economic growth.
DIFC authority CEO Arif Amiri said: “We are delighted to see Nomura’s growth plans flourish in DIFC, Dubai and the region.
“With over USD3 trn of private wealth within an hour’s flight of the city, and access to a combined GDP of USD8 trn across the MEASA region, there continues to be strong demand for global wealth and asset management firms establishing and expanding premises in DIFC.”
