Mizuho

Rakuten needs money – and lots of it – as its mobile telecommunications arm continues to burn cash. But it is running out of things to sell, while its debt profile is miserable.

The Japanese bank sees Greenhill as the missing M&A piece in its US product offering. Asiamoney speaks to the New York-based CEO of Mizuho Securities US operations Jerry Rizzieri, and US head of investment and corporate banking, Michal Katz, about the bank’s ambitions.

Japan's Mizuho is one to watch in the region as it builds on its domestic strength to move into overseas markets.

The country’s lenders face depressing conditions in their home market, with negative interest rates, razor-thin net interest margins and an ageing population. If they want to lift profits, they have little choice but to expand offshore, despite numerous hurdles.