Nomura raises CEO pay to US$10 million after profit hits a record

[TOKYO] Nomura Holdings raised chief executive officer Kentaro Okuda’s pay by 36 per cent last fiscal year, rewarding him after the Japanese firm posted its highest ever annual profit. 

Okuda’s compensation rose to US$10 million in the year ended March 31, according to a filing on Monday (Jun 22). Wholesale division head Christopher Willcox, the company’s highest-paid executive officer, saw his remuneration climb 13 per cent to US$17 million.

Under Okuda’s leadership, Japan’s biggest brokerage generated a second straight year of record net income, helped by a rebound in the nation’s financial markets and a surge in deals. Nomura has since raised its midterm profit targets as Okuda pushes for growth that will remain stable even during downturns. 

Nomura has raised Okuda’s compensation since he took office in 2020. For comparison, Goldman Sachs Group CEO David Solomon received US$47 million in 2025, while UBS Group AG’s Sergio Ermotti earned US$18 million. Daiwa Securities Group, Nomura’s biggest domestic rival, lifted CEO Akihiko Ogino’s compensation by 23 per cent to ¥489 million (S$3.9 million) last fiscal year, filings show. 

The disclosure came before Nomura’s annual shareholder meeting scheduled to take place in Tokyo on Tuesday. There are no shareholder proposals on the agenda at the gathering. Shares of Nomura have risen about 10 per cent this year, trailing the benchmark Topix index’s 20 per cent advance. 

Willcox, whose division handles investment banking and trading, was recently made a deputy president. BLOOMBERG