Japanese finance houses talk merger

Speculation that two of Japan’s biggest finance companies may merge sent their share prices up today.

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial (SMFG), and Daiwa Securities, have been linked to merger talks by Japanese finance paper Nihon Keizai Shimbun, which claimed that the two companies have already discussed the merger with Japanese regulators.

Both SMFG and Daiwa refused to answer the main speculation, but did concede that both companies were looking for a closer partnership.

SMFG is Japan’s third-biggest lender, and Daiwa is the country’s second-largest brokerage firm. If they were to combine, it would create a company with assets of more than $1,000bn (£537bn).

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