Nomura Holdings is exploring a potential sale of its cryptocurrency subsidiary Laser Digital, with London-based financial services group Marex among the parties evaluating an acquisition, according to people familiar with the discussions. The talks remain preliminary and Nomura has not made a final decision, leaving open the possibility that the Zurich-based business is retained or sold to another buyer. Neither Nomura nor Marex commented publicly.
The possible divestiture follows sustained losses at Laser Digital and a difficult period for Nomura’s European operations. Nomura’s European unit posted a ¥7.4 billion ($46.5 million) pretax loss in the September 2026 quarter, its fourth consecutive quarterly loss. Although Laser Digital’s contribution was not separately disclosed, Bloomberg reported that earlier trading losses at the crypto subsidiary had pushed the European division into the red. During a January 30 earnings call, CFO Hiroyuki Moriuchi said Nomura would reduce risk exposure in crypto positions after losses in October and November 2025.
Laser Digital was launched in September 2022 and operates across cryptocurrency trading, venture capital and investment products. It holds regulatory approvals in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Japan, and in August 2026 its Japanese subsidiary became the country’s first newly registered crypto exchange operator in about four years. In May, the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency granted preliminary conditional approval for a Laser Digital trust bank focused on digital asset custody.
Marex already provides crypto trading and financial services to institutional clients and launched an over-the-counter rolling spot cryptocurrency product on October 1. No purchase price or timetable has been disclosed. Nomura continues to operate other digital asset businesses, including custody provider Komainu and tokenization-focused Boostry. Meanwhile, broader institutional crypto activity continues: Deutsche Bank launched crypto custody in Europe, and Israel Discount Bank plans to offer Bitcoin and Ethereum trading from November 26.
