Nomura: Dopey diversification

Nomura Holdings’ $1.5bn loss is the second in six months caused by its US operations. With the best franchise in Japan, Nomura should be a goldmine. Yet it wastes money through repeated foreign forays, which endanger its domestic dominance. That’s where it should focus its main efforts. Nomura is the largest securities house in Japan. Its major competitors were reduced from three to two by the bankruptcy of Yamaichi in 1998, while another competitor, Nikko, has been bought by the troubled Citig...