Nomura’s Laser Digital Japan has secured approval to provide institutional crypto asset services.
It comes as traditional capital markets players continue to respond to the growing institutional interest in digital assets as a portfolio diversifier.
Steve Ashley, executive chairman of Laser Digital, said the approval positions the firm to meet rising institutional demand for regulated crypto infrastructure.
“As institutional appetite for digital assets grows across global markets, sophisticated investors are increasingly looking for access and the necessary quality of infrastructure behind it,” he said.
The Tokyo-based company, part of Nomura’s digital assets subsidiary Laser Digital, has completed its registration as a Crypto Asset Exchange Service Provider under Japan’s Payment Services Act.
The approval allows it initially to provide liquidity services to domestic virtual asset service providers, with plans to expand into digital asset trading for institutional investors at a later date.
In a media statement, Laser Digital said details on the launch timing and scope of those future services will be announced later. The company added that it will operate under compliance, risk management and governance standards designed to meet global regulatory expectations.
Jez Mohideen, chief executive of Laser Digital, said Japan’s digital assets sector was entering “a new phase of maturity”, creating greater demand for trusted counterparties and institutional-grade market infrastructure.
Hideaki Kudo, head of Laser Digital Japan, described the registration as an important step in the company’s plans to serve the domestic market while supporting the long-term development of Japan’s digital assets industry.
The registration marks the first new approval in Japan’s crypto asset sector for around four years, highlighting the strict regulatory environment that has limited new entrants since 2022.
The move comes amid signs of increasing institutional acceptance of digital assets in Japan. A survey published by Nomura and Laser Digital earlier this year found that 65% of Japanese institutional investors viewed crypto assets as a diversification opportunity, while 79% of those considering the asset class said they planned to invest within the next three years.
Laser Digital was established by Nomura in 2022 to focus on digital asset trading, venture capital and investment products. Nomura, founded in 1925, operates across more than 30 countries and regions, making the approval another step in the group’s broader expansion into digital finance.
