ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi reports, Nomura Securities' global foreign exchange strategy team stated in a research report that the US dollar may strengthen in 2025. The team indicated that the main themes entering next year include the Federal Reserve potentially having difficulty cutting interest rates due to persistently high core inflation in the United States, as well as the tariff policies of President-elect Trump.The team added that currencies that may perform poorly in the first half of 2025 could include the South Korean won, Thai baht, Singapore dollar, Swiss franc, and Swedish krona, while the Indonesian rupiah, Japanese yen, and Norwegian krone may see slightly better performance.

ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi reports, Nomura Securities no longer expects the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates at the December policy meeting. This makes it the first global brokerage to suggest a rate-cutting cycle by the Federal Reserve after Trump's election victory. Nomura Securities now anticipates that the Federal Reserve will only cut rates twice more in March and June 2025, each by 25 basis points. The brokerage maintains its forecast for the Federal Funds Rate at 4.125% until next year. Nomura Securities expects that after a possible rate cut in June next year, the Federal Reserve will pause rate cuts for an extended period until March 2026.The Federal Reserve's benchmark overnight rate is currently in the range of 4.50%-4.75%, having been lowered by 75 basis points so far this year. Meanwhile, other global brokerages, including Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan, still expect the Federal Reserve to cut rates by 25 basis points next month.

ChainCatcher news, according to Bloomberg, following the launch of the Ethereum cryptocurrency ETF, Nomura's digital asset division plans to offer a higher-yield alternative that includes key components that U.S. issuers may have overlooked in order to gain regulatory approval.These Ethereum ETFs do not include staking, which is the process by which investors earn passive income by temporarily providing their tokens to the Ethereum network to help validate transactions.Nomura's cryptocurrency division, Laser Digital, plans to launch the fund before early September, supported by Galaxy Digital and the crypto startup Dinero. The fund will be open to so-called qualified investors, such as hedge funds and private investment offices, rather than retail buyers.Laser Digital views the fund as an alternative to the Ethereum ETF, providing institutional investors with the opportunity to access the "yield component" of Ethereum.Dinero provides the software technology behind the fund to generate yield. A spokesperson for Galaxy Digital stated that Galaxy Digital is finalizing an agreement to potentially operate as the sole validator operator, running and maintaining the computers that help ensure and verify Ethereum transactions. The fund will not immediately list in the U.S. after its launch.

ChainCatcher news, Nomura's cryptocurrency division Laser Digital Limited has obtained a brokerage license for traditional and digital assets in the Abu Dhabi region.The new license will enable Laser Digital to provide brokerage services for digital and traditional assets, as well as asset and fund management services in the region.

ChainCatcher news, according to Ledger Insights, Nomura Securities announced that its digital asset subsidiary Laser Digital is collaborating with GMO Internet, the parent company of stablecoin issuer GMO-Z. The two parties plan to jointly explore the issuance of USD and JPY stablecoins in Japan and provide stablecoin-as-a-service solutions in the Japanese market.It is reported that GMO-Z holds a trust license from the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS), and its stablecoins GYEN and ZUSD are available on the Ethereum, Solana, and Stellar blockchains.

ChainCatcher news, according to Blockworks, Nomura Securities' digital asset subsidiary Laser Digital has announced the launch of a new fund, the Polygon Adoption Fund, aimed at providing investors with investment opportunities in the Polygon native token MATIC. It is reported that the fund will hold TruMATIC, which is the liquid staking token received when MATIC is deposited into the TruStake vault.In addition, the Polygon Adoption Fund utilizes Polygon AggLayer, which aims to connect layer 1 or layer 2 blockchains supported by zero-knowledge technology, enabling almost instantaneous cross-chain transactions.

ChainCatcher news, according to Bloomberg, informed sources revealed that U.S. authorities are investigating the investment bank B. Riley Financial Inc. for its transactions with a significant client related to securities fraud, as well as the use of that client's assets to help the investment bank secure loans from Nomura Holdings Inc.A spokesperson for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission declined to comment, noting that the investigation is still in its early stages. The agency's review does not necessarily imply that anyone has engaged in any wrongdoing, nor does it guarantee that legal action will be taken, and Nomura Securities is not the focus of the investigation. A spokesperson for B. Riley stated in an email that they have not received any information from the SEC regarding this matter and that they will fully cooperate if the SEC conducts an investigation.

ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, Nomura Securities' digital asset subsidiary Laser Digital has partnered with WebN Group to launch the Libre protocol, which is an institutional Web3 protocol powered by Polygon technology. Libre utilizes asset tokenization and smart contracts, aiming to achieve compliant issuance and management of alternative investments. The protocol is built using the Polygon Chain Development Kit (CDK) and can develop dedicated, zero-knowledge driven L2 blockchains on Ethereum.It is reported that Laser Digital is the cryptocurrency division of Nomura Securities, while WebN Group is a fintech and Web3 innovation incubation center supported by Laser Digital and Brevan Howard co-founder Alan Howard.

ChainCatcher news, Nomura Securities' digital asset subsidiary Laser Digital has launched an Ethereum Adoption Fund aimed at institutional investors. The fund invests in long spot positions in Ethereum and also deploys yield enhancement strategies by staking the Ethereum held by the fund.Previously in September, Laser Digital under Nomura Securities launched a Bitcoin Adoption Fund for institutions.

ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, Nomura Securities' digital asset subsidiary Laser Digital has expanded its business to Japan and opened a new office in Tokyo.It is reported that Hideaki Kudo has been appointed as the representative director and head of the new office in Japan, having previously served as a senior portfolio manager at Nomura Asset Management.

ChainCatcher news, Nomura Securities' digital asset subsidiary Laser Digital has launched a Bitcoin Adoption Fund aimed at institutional investors. This is a long-term mutual fund based in the Cayman Islands, with Komainu responsible for digital asset custody.

ChainCatcher news, according to Bloomberg, Nomura's digital asset subsidiary Laser Digital, based in Dubai, has obtained a cryptocurrency license in Dubai, allowing it to provide virtual asset brokerage and investment management services locally. Laser Digital stated that it plans to launch over-the-counter trading services and digital asset investment products for institutional investors in the coming months.

ChainCatcher News, Japan's financial services giant Nomura's cryptocurrency subsidiary Laser Digital has invested in the incubator Webn, supported by Alan Howard, to seek to provide more cryptocurrency-related services to mature financial institutions.The company announced today that as part of the collaboration, Laser Digital CEO Jez Mohideen will join the Webn board as a non-executive director. Laser Digital and Webn did not disclose the scale of the investment.It is reported that Webn was established at the end of 2021 and has already incubated several Web3 companies, including the cryptographic research institution Geometry, the DeFi protocol Trufin, and the non-custodial staking provider Twinstake.

ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, Nomura's digital asset subsidiary Laser Digital has appointed industry veteran Florent Jouanneau as the new partner for its venture capital business. Despite the low funding levels across the industry, Laser Digital plans to make 10 more investments in early-stage web3 startups this year.It is reported that Jouanneau joined Laser Digital from White Star Capital, a venture capital firm that invests in web3 and DeFi startups. He previously served as a structured credit and ABS trader at Bank of America and held sales and trading positions at UBS and Natixis, a subsidiary of BPCE Group. (source link)

ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, Nomura Securities' digital asset company Laser Digital has acquired the digital asset trading firm Elysium Technology Group. Through this acquisition, both companies intend to provide better post-trade products for institutional investors.Elysium focuses on providing over-the-counter and post-trade solutions for foreign exchange and digital assets through its RiskDB and MatchHub services. RiskDB minimizes trading costs by streamlining post-trade workflows, while the MatchHub software can match, coordinate, and settle real-time trades. (The Block)

ChainCatcher news, OKX has announced a partnership with compliant digital asset custodian Komainu. OKX has integrated Komainu's collateral management platform, Komainu Connect, allowing institutional clients to conduct secure transactions 24/7 under asset isolation custody through OKX.Lennix Lai, Global Chief Business Officer of OKX, stated: "Providing investors with secure asset custody solutions is why we are very pleased to partner with Komainu. Institutions need peace of mind knowing their funds are securely held by a leading custodian, while also being able to seize investment opportunities as they arise."

ChainCatcher news, Japanese financial services giant Nomura Securities' crypto subsidiary Laser Digital has invested in Infinity Exchange, a DeFi protocol for institutional lending.Infinity founder and CEO Kevin Lepsoe stated that Laser's investment is a supplement to the $4.2 million seed round funding raised by Infinity last September from supporters including GSR and Flow Traders. He declined to comment on the valuation and the method of financing. (source link)

ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, Japanese banking giant Nomura Securities' subsidiary Laser Digital has announced an investment in the NEAR ecosystem DeFi infrastructure protocol Orderly Network. The specific amount of this investment deal has not been disclosed, but Orderly Network's valuation remains at $200 million, the same as its previous seed round financing.Earlier reports indicated that Orderly Network announced the completion of a $20 million Series A financing on June 9 of this year, with participation from Three Arrows Capital, Sequoia China, Pantera Capital, Dragonfly Capital, Jump Crypto, Seven X Ventures, IOSG Ventures, Alameda Research, GSR Ventures, and MetaWeb.VC. (source link)

Chain Catcher news, Steve Ashley, the head of Nomura's trading and investment banking business, will step down from his original position to take charge of cryptocurrency-related business. It is reported that Steve Ashley will subsequently serve as the chairman of Nomura's newly established Swiss subsidiary, Laser Digital Holdings AG, which will focus on cryptocurrency business, while Jez Mohideen, who is currently responsible for cryptocurrency operations, will become the CEO of the subsidiary. (Bloomberg)