In the lead up to our centenary on December 25, 2025, we are releasing a series of videos highlighting Nomura’s history on our 100th Anniversary Website.
In the late 1960s, amid the rapid growth of the Japanese economy, Nomura launched several innovative products, systems, and services that advanced the democratization of investment. Leveraging our core strengths in research and product development, we also made significant progress in internationalizing our organization.
Episode 4 highlights Nomura’s strategic focus on research, product development, and globalization.
In 1965, Nomura Research Institute (NRI) was established as a pioneering private think tank in Japan. Built on Nomura’s strong research legacy, NRI drew inspiration from what was then called the Stanford Research Institute, the world’s top research institute.
Hear from Minoru Segawa, Nomura’s president at the time, as he reflects on this pivotal period.
With our research capabilities firmly established, Nomura implemented two key initiatives to promote investment.
The first was the establishment of the Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), which is still widely used today. The second was the development of the “Medium-Term Japanese Government Bond Fund,” which proved very popular at the time. What prevailing trends led to the introduction of these two initiatives?
In 1968, Japan's gross national product (GNP) became the second largest in the world. With global attention focused on Japan, Nomura rapidly expanded its international presence. Building on this momentum, Nomura launched the "Buy Japan” campaign and the "Central Bankers Seminar" to promote Japan’s strong economy and its companies to the world.
Watch below to learn more.
