Nomura Asset seeks Asia expansion

By Rafael Nam

TOKYO (Reuters) -Nomura Asset Management, Japan's largest money manager, is looking to expand into retail fund markets in Asia, its chief investment officer said on Wednesday, as it seeks to increase its overseas exposure to fuel growth.

Asian asset managers such as South Korea's Mirae Asset are increasingly looking beyond their borders for growth. Last month, Nomura announced it would take over the management of the Japan Fund in the United States, billed as the world's oldest fund focused on Japanese equities.

But once high-flying regional stock markets, such as India and China, have sharply reversed course this year, falling victim to a weakening global economy, a continued global credit crisis, and increasingly, the specter of inflation.

But Nomura Asset is banking on the long-term growth potential for the region, as a handful of other Asian asset managers also bet that they can translate expertise gathered in years of operating within their borders to markets abroad.

"We would like to go into the Asian retail market," Takahide Mizuno, CIO of the asset management unit of Nomura Holdings (8604.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), told the Reuters Japan Investment Summit.

Mizuno noted the expansion into Asia would likely start in countries where it has already established offices, pointing to South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Malaysia as targets.

Nomura Asset aims to grow overseas on its own, but in China and India, the fund may seek joint ventures or other alliances, Mizuno said, citing them as examples of countries "with unique cultures and unique regulations".

Nomura Asset had 24.3 trillion yen ($229.2 billion) in assets under management as of March 31.  Continued...