Mizuho & Maybank in business tie-up

Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. on Monday announced a business tie-up with Malaysian Maybank Investment Bank Berhad targeting corporate clients, part of a push by Japanese banks to expand overseas. The deal is Mizuho's first alliance with a Southeast Asian partner, a company spokesman said, adding that their joint operation has already begun. The two companies will team up to provide corporate clients with advisory and other information related to merger and acquisition as well as fund-raising. "We have felt the need for partnership in Islamic countries like Malaysia as there are special rules and practices," said the spokesman for Mizuho Securities, part of Japan's number two banking group, Mizuho Financial. "Under the new cooperation, the two companies can jointly offer business advice to our Japanese and other clients operating in Malaysia." The move reflects a renewed expansion drive by Japan's banks in overseas markets to compensate for a sluggish domestic performance due to a shrinking population and a weak economy hobbled by deflation.