Daiwa Securities Co. obtained shareholder approval Friday for its plan to convert itself into a holding company in April with more than 10 firms under its wing.
The conversion, approved at a special shareholders' meeting in the morning, will create the first holding company in Japan's financial industry and may prompt others to follow suit in the near future.
The restructuring plan, aimed at improving the competitiveness of the Daiwa Securities group, calls for establishing a holding company, Daiwa Securities Group Inc., on April 26. It will have a staff of some 150 responsible for planning, financing and other services.
Daiwa Securities currently has 25 group companies in Japan. The major brokerage will pick more than 10 of them for placement under Daiwa Securities Group, which will own equity stakes of at least 50 percent in each. Daiwa Securities Group will be listed on stock exchanges in place of Daiwa Securities.
Subsidiaries to be held by Daiwa Securities Group include Daiwa Institute of Research and Daiwa Securities SB Capital Markets Co., a joint venture to be formed in April by Daiwa Securities and Sumitomo Bank to provide brokerage services for corporate clients.
Daiwa Securities SB Capital Markets will be capitalized at 300 billion yen, with Daiwa Securities putting up 60 percent of the total and Sumitomo the rest.