Risks Relating to Legal, Compliance and Other Operational Issues
14. Operational risk could adversely affect our business
Operational risk is the risk of financial loss or non-financial impact arising from inadequate or
failed internal processes and systems, from a lack of appropriate personnel, from human errors, or from external events, and includes compliance, legal, IT and cyber security, fraud, third party, and other
non-financial risks. We always face the potential of operational risk, and if materializes, it could adversely affect our business. Issues related to operational risk may include the risks listed in items 15
to 21 below.
15. We identified a material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting and, despite our efforts to remediate, may
identify further material weaknesses in the future
We identified a material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting
during the quarter ended March 31, 2024 in relation to certain classification and presentation matters within the consolidated statement of cash flows as included within our consolidated financial statements, which has resulted in the need to
restate the consolidated statement of cash flows in certain of our annual and interim consolidated financial statements. We have identified and implemented a number of remediation actions to address this material weakness and intended to mitigate
the risk of similar errors occurring in the future within the consolidated statement of cash flows. While our management has concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was effective as of March 31, 2024, additional material
weaknesses or other issues nevertheless may arise in the future resulting in us not being able to provide financial information in our consolidated financial statements and elsewhere in an accurate, timely and reliable manner or requiring additional
restatements of our consolidated financial statements or other aspects of our periodic reporting. This may undermine confidence in our published financial information and other reported information by users of our consolidated financial statements,
including holders of our securities, resulting in reductions in the price of our common stock and/or American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) as well as limit our access to capital markets, impact client or counterparty appetite to enter into
transactions with us and subject us to potential regulatory investigations and sanctions, each of which may materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. See Managements Report on
Internal Control Over Financial Reporting for further details on the material weakness identified and our remediation actions to address this material weakness.
16. Misconduct or fraud by an employee, director or officer, or any third party, could occur, and our reputation in the market and our relationships with
clients could be harmed
We always face the risk that our employees, directors or officers, or any third party, could engage in
misconduct that may adversely affect our business. Misconduct by an employee, director or officer includes conduct such as entering into transactions in excess of authorized limits, acceptance of risks that exceed our limits, or concealment of
unauthorized or unsuccessful activities. The misconduct could also involve the improper use or disclosure of non-public information relating to us or our clients, such as insider trading, improper transmission
of such information and the recommendation of trades based on such information, as well as other crimes, which could result in regulatory sanctions, legal liability and serious reputational or financial damage to us.
Third parties may also engage in fraudulent activities, including devising a fraudulent scheme to induce our investment, loans, guarantee or
any other form of financial commitment, both direct and indirect. Because of the broad range of businesses that we engage in and the large number of third parties with whom we deal in our day-to-day business operations, such fraud or any other misconduct may be difficult to prevent or detect, and our future reputation and financial condition could be adversely affected, which could result in
serious reputational or financial damage to us in the future.
We have taken measures in line with the improvement plan to detect and
prevent such fraudulent or misconduct by our employees, directors or officers, or any third party in the future, including the establishment and implementation of the Nomura Group Code of Conduct including ensuring its thorough
dissemination throughout the group and ensuring thorough compliance with its terms, and through compliance training or any other programs, as well as an enhanced internal reporting system. However, the measures we have implemented or additional
measures that may be implemented in the future may not be effective in preventing or managing the risk of misconduct or fraud in all cases, and we may not always be able to detect or deter misconduct or fraud by an employee, director, officers, or
third parties. If any administrative or judicial sanction is issued against us as a result of such fraudulent or misconduct, we may lose business opportunities, and our future revenue and results of operations may be materially and adversely
affected, even after the sanction is lifted, if and to the extent that our clients, especially public institutions, decide not to engage us for their financial transactions.
17. A failure to identify and appropriately address conflicts of interest could adversely affect our business
We are a global financial institution that provides a wide range of products and services to a diverse group of clients, including individuals,
corporations, other financial institutions and governmental institutions. As such, we face potential conflicts of interest in the ordinary course of our business. Conflicts of interests can arise when our services to a particular client conflict or
compete, or are perceived to conflict or compete, with our own interests. In addition, where non-public information is not appropriately restricted or shared within Nomura, conflicts of interest can also arise
where a transaction within the Nomura Group or a transaction with another client conflict or compete, or is perceived to conflict or compete, with a transaction with a particular client. While we have extensive internal procedures and controls
designed to identify and address conflicts of interest on the basis of the Nomura Group Conflicts of Interest Management Policy, a failure, or a perceived failure, to identify, disclose and appropriately address such conflicts could
adversely affect our reputation, the willingness of current or potential clients to do business with us, and give risk to regulatory actions or litigation against us, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results
of operations.
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