The Hyakujushi Bank and Nomura Securities announced that they will begin operations of their partnered business on December 7, 2026, based on a comprehensive business alliance in financial instruments intermediary services. The background behind this includes the goal of enhancing asset management consulting functions at regional financial institutions, responding to the “asset-management nation” initiative promoted by the Financial Services Agency, and building a sustainable financial business model through collaboration with a major securities firm.

Partnership Overview and Key Points for Launching Sales

The 114 Bank, Ltd. (President and Representative Director: Masashi Mori) and Nomura Securities Co., Ltd. (Representative Director and President: Kentaro Okuda), a 100% subsidiary of Nomura Holdings, Inc., have announced that they will commence operations under their comprehensive business alliance in the financial instruments intermediary business, for which a definitive agreement was concluded on December 9, 2025, starting on Monday, December 7, 2026. According to an announcement dated October 1, 2026, the alliance will establish two new specialized bases, “Asset Consulting Plazas,” within Kagawa Prefecture, creating a framework to provide regional customers with advanced, one-stop asset management services. In conjunction with this, Nomura Securities’ Takamatsu Branch will cease operations on Friday, December 4, 2026, and integrate and transition its functions to the new bases. Additionally, a new alliance logo has been created, incorporating motifs based on the long-standing trust both companies have built with their customers and the technique of Sanuki Kagari Temari, a traditional craft of Kagawa Prefecture. By combining The 114 Bank’s robust regional operating base with Nomura Securities’ world-class financial products and consulting expertise, the two companies aim to comprehensively respond to the asset-building needs of the local community. Please refer to the diagram below for an overview of the alliance structure.

Structure of the New “Asset Consulting Plaza” Base

The “Asset Consulting Plaza,” newly established on December 7, 2026, is a custody asset-focused facility set up within the Asset Consulting Department, a headquarters organization of The Hyakujushi Bank. Specifically, the “Takamatsu Asset Consulting Plaza” will be established in the Central Daiichi Building in Kameicho, Takamatsu City, and the “Marugame Asset Consulting Plaza” on the 8th floor of the Central Marugame Building in Fudaicho, Marugame City. Business hours will be from 9:00 to 15:30 on weekdays, operating except during the year-end and New Year holidays. These plazas will be staffed jointly by specialized secondees dispatched from Nomura Securities and employees of The Hyakujushi Bank, who will work together to provide face-to-face consulting. By leveraging the bank’s long-standing transaction history and deep ties with local customers, alongside Nomura Securities’ rich product lineup including diverse investment trusts, bonds, and fund wraps, the plazas will enable comprehensive asset management that transcends the framework of traditional bank counter sales. Through the operation of these new locations, the two companies aim to help achieve financial wellness for each and every local customer, providing companion support for asset building tailored to their life plans.

Background of Regional Financial Transformation and Strategic Partnerships

Leading Case Studies and Partnership Genealogy with The San-in Godo Bank

A pioneer of the comprehensive financial intermediary alliance model between regional banks and major securities firms is the alliance between Nomura Securities and San-in Godo Bank (Gogin), which commenced operations in October 2020. San-in Godo Bank transferred accounts from its securities subsidiary and investment trust accounts to Nomura Securities, and accepted approximately 90 specialized secondees from Nomura, thereby concentrating its resources on consulting at customer touchpoints. As a result, assets under management by customers, which stood at approximately 500 billion yen at the start of the alliance, expanded to 608.1 billion yen as of the end of March 2022, and are achieving remarkable results, such as aiming for 800 billion yen by the fiscal year ending March 2026. This success story of the “Gogin & Nomura” collaboration at San-in Godo Bank has been highly praised within the financial industry as a versatile solution model that dramatically improves the quality of advisory services while reducing fixed costs for system maintenance and product procurement. The comprehensive alliance between The Hyakujushi Bank and Nomura Securities also follows this lineage, and it is expected that the know-how in personnel exchange and operational integration accumulated from the preceding case will be fully demonstrated in the Kagawa area as well. Please refer to the figure below for the transition of the alliance results at San-in Godo Bank.

The 114 Bank’s Positioning in the “New Medium-Term Management Plan”

The Hyakujushi Bank has formulated a new medium-term management plan spanning the three-year period from April 1, 2026, to March 31, 2029, titled “Dakara, Idomu. -Chiiki no Mirai o, Tashikana Katachi ni-“, and is promoting structural reforms under the leadership of President Masashi Mori. Anticipating the transition to a world with interest rates, the bank is executing approximately 20 billion yen in financial DX system investments—greatly exceeding its previous medium-term management plan—while also accelerating human capital management (HRX) and sustainability (SX). In particular, under “Challenging Regional Economic Growth,” one of the plan’s core themes, it aims to deepen advanced consulting fields such as business succession, M&A, international business, and asset management. The comprehensive business alliance with Nomura Securities is positioned as a core measure of its retail strategy supporting individuals’ life design and asset formation, with the aim of simultaneously expanding fee income and strengthening its stock-type revenue base by combining the bank’s wide-area branch network and digital infrastructure. This can be described as a tangible embodiment of “selection and focus” that strategically utilizes robust external resources.

Financial Administration’s “Plan for Strengthening Regional Financial Capabilities” and the Asset Management Nation Initiative

Behind this comprehensive business alliance is a strong influence from the administrative policies promoted by the government, the Financial Services Agency (FSA), and Local Finance Bureaus, such as the “Regional Financial Strength Enhancement Plan” and the initiative to make Japan an “asset management nation.” Japanese regional financial institutions have faced structural challenges, including the shrinking of their customer base due to population decline and a declining birthrate with an aging population, as well as narrowing profit margins caused by the prolonged low-interest-rate environment. The FSA has been encouraging regional banks to provide sophisticated solutions that go beyond mere lending and to achieve efficient business operations through “collaboration” with competitors and other industries. Particularly in the field of retail finance, there is a strong demand to fulfill the best-product policy (the policy of providing the most appropriate financial products for customers) and to thoroughly ensure fiduciary duty (customer-first business operations). Entrusting the procurement of sophisticated products and system operations—which are difficult for an individual regional bank to handle alone—to a major securities platform like Nomura Securities, while the banks themselves specialize in community-rooted face-to-face consulting, serves as a rational solution that aligns with national policy mandates to enhance the sustainability of regional finance.

Ripple Effects on Local Communities and Future Financial Outlook

Specific Benefits for Local Customers and Businesses

With the launch of a comprehensive business alliance between The Hyakujushi Bank and Nomura Securities, local residents and local business owners, centering on Kagawa Prefecture, will gain immense convenience and access to high-quality financial services. A wide variety of domestic and overseas securities, advanced investment trusts, fund wraps, and other investment products—which have hitherto been difficult for regional retail investors to access—will become smoothly available through The Hyakujushi Bank’s familiar branch counters and the newly established Asset Consulting Plaza. Furthermore, for high-net-worth individuals and business owners, comprehensive solutions will be offered that integrate personal asset management with corporate consulting services, such as business succession, measures relating to company shares, M&A, and corporate fund management. By combining the bank’s comprehensive credibility with the securities firm’s specialized expertise, customers will be able to receive lifelong financial planning through a single financial institution group, which is expected to contribute to enhancing financial literacy and revitalizing wealth accumulation throughout the region.

Future Outlook and Key Points to Watch

In preparation for the start of operations on December 7, 2026, both companies are rapidly advancing their launch preparations, including customer account transfer procedures, system integration, and the standardization of consulting rules. Looking ahead, the first point of attention is whether the cultural integration (culture change) between employees seconded from Nomura Securities and those from The 114th Bank, alongside the enhancement of their consulting capabilities, will proceed smoothly. The second is how far data-driven proposal methods utilizing customer data from both companies and integration with digital channels will evolve. Similar to the preceding case of Sanin Godo Bank, if the expansion of customer assets under management and stock revenues can be achieved early on, it could further heighten the momentum for partnerships among other financial institutions in চায়ーク (Wait, Shikoku region) and regional banks nationwide. Much attention is focused on its operational results to see whether this new hybrid financial business model—which combines community-rooted banking functions with top-tier national securities know-how—can serve as a model case that paves the way for the future of regional finance operating in a challenging environment.

Reference Page

• [Possibilities and Challenges of the IFA Business (Part 7): The Significance of the Comprehensive Business Alliance Between Nomura and San-in Godo] https://www.a-ifa.jp/carrier/report/oohara-rpt/rpt07.html

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