Saki Akita

Oct 3, 2024 | asia.nikkei.com | Saki Akita

TOKYO -- Bank of America is opening an office in Singapore this month to help Japanese companies expand into India and the rest of Asia, the lender's Japan country executive said. This will be BofA's third support base for Japanese companies, following ones in New York and London, and offer advice on everything from foreign currency procurement to M&A financing.

Sep 10, 2024 | asia.nikkei.com | Saki Akita

TOKYO -- Japan has become a crucial market for global private equity firms, the head of JPMorgan Chase's Asia-Pacific investment banking told Nikkei in a recent interview. Paul Uren said private equity firms have developed a track record of creating value and serving as a steward for Japanese companies, which has improved the perception of such firms.

Jun 17, 2024 | asia.nikkei.com | Saki Akita

NEW YORK -- Citigroup is offering new banking services in Japan, starting this month, targeting midsize Japanese businesses as it looks to once again expand its footprint in a key Asian market. Midsize-banking arm Citi Commercial Bank decided to add Japan to the regions where midsize businesses can access services. Similar services have been rolled out since 2022 in such markets as Germany, Canada and France.

May 24, 2024 | asia.nikkei.com | Hirofumi Takeuchi |Saki Akita |Yoshikazu Imahori

NEW YORK/TOKYO -- As the U.S. prepares to shorten its settlement cycle for equity and corporate bond trades from Tuesday, foreign investors are bracing for potential difficulty in securing dollars before the deadline that could result in failed trades. In the U.S., it typically takes two business days after a securities transaction before the securities and payments are officially transferred to the parties' respective accounts -- a system known as T+2.

Apr 23, 2024 | asia.nikkei.com | Saki Akita

TOKYO -- The mergers and acquisitions market in Asia will grow in 2024, said Jan Metzger, the head of Citigroup's investment banking division in Asia excluding Japan, in a recent Nikkei interview where he pointed to extensive investing opportunities in Japanese technology and beyond. The total value of M&A deals involving Japanese players grew roughly 50% in 2023 to a five-year high of around 23 trillion yen ($149 billion), according to LSEG Data & Analytics, formerly Refinitiv.