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Japan tells Nomura to investigate ex-worker’s alleged attempted murder – BNN Bloomberg
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Japan tells Nomura to investigate ex-worker’s alleged attempted murder – BNN Bloomberg

(Bloomberg) — Japan’s financial regulator is urging Nomura Holdings Inc. to examine the cause of an alleged robbery and attempted murder by a former employee and formulate measures to prevent similar incidents, according to people familiar with the matter.

The Financial Services Agency wants the nation’s largest brokerage to thoroughly review the alleged incident and look into its root cause and background, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. The regulator will follow up with Nomura on progress in implementing those steps, the people added.

“Through the measures announced on November 6, Nomura will step up efforts to enforce strict compliance with the Code of Conduct by every employee and work to restore the trust of stakeholders,” the Tokyo-based company said.

A representative for the FSA declined to comment.

The development is the latest example of Nomura coming into the regulator’s sights. The agency fined the firm last month for rigging Japan’s 2021 government bond futures market, a scandal that prompted some clients to shift bond trading and underwriting activities to rivals.

The latest edict follows reports that a 29-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of drugging an elderly customer and his wife in Hiroshima, stealing about ¥26 million ($170,000) in cash from their home and setting it on fire. The suspect was charged with robbery, arson and attempted murder.

While the 80-year-old couple escaped safely, the news rocked Japan’s financial industry in part because the suspect was a Nomura employee at the time of the alleged incident in July, before he was fired.

The company is tightening rules governing employee visits to customers’ homes, which is a common practice in Japan. The firm said it was cooperating fully with the police investigation, according to a statement on Wednesday.

The FSA wants Nomura to come up with both short- and long-term solutions, the people said.

Japan’s brokerage houses are increasingly competing to manage a larger share of the nation’s more than 2 quadrillion yen in household financial assets. People aged 70 and over own nearly 40% of these assets, according to an August government report.

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