Daiwa Securities Group Inc. plans to hire more bankers, mainly in the U.S. and Europe, to advise on midsize mergers and acquisitions, as Japan’s second-largest brokerage seeks to build on record income from dealmaking.

The Tokyo-based firm may recruit "a few dozen” new staff, including managing directors, for its advisory business with a focus on healthcare and financial institutions, CEO Seiji Nakata said in an interview. By boosting its overseas network of about 500 investment bankers, Daiwa hopes to hit its target of earning ¥50 billion ($393 million) annually from M&A advisory in three to five years, he said.

"We want to seize on the opportunities,” he said. "The world’s fee pool for the merger and acquisition business will probably stay solid over the coming few years.”