From the journal

Bafin imposes fine on Nomura Holdings Inc. for WpHG breach

On 15 October 2026, Bafin fined Nomura Holdings Inc. €320,000 for failing to submit voting rights notifications during UniCredit S.p.A.’s takeover bid for Commerzbank AG in May and June 2026.

1 min read

On 15 October 2026, the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (Bafin) imposed an administrative fine of €320,000 on Nomura Holdings Inc. for breaching supervisory duties related to the German Securities Trading Act (WpHG).

Bafin relied on the German Securities Trading Act (WpHG) for this enforcement action.

The fine applies specifically to Nomura Holdings Inc., which failed to submit required voting rights notifications during UniCredit S.p.A.’s takeover bid for Commerzbank AG in May and June 2026.

Source: BaFin, official publication, retrieved 2026-10-20

More from the journal

See all
Illia Prokopiev

A 2026 guide to company jurisdictions for heavy data processing

A company that collects and analyses personal data at scale faces three separate tests when it chooses where to incorporate. They are the data protection law that binds a company formed there, the international lists that banks and counterparties screen against, and the cost of forming, running and banking the company. This guide applies those tests to 24 jurisdictions in Asia, the Middle East, the Atlantic and Caribbean, the Pacific and West Africa. Every jurisdiction here without a private-sector data protection law in force has thin banking, currency controls or both.

South African validators supplying crypto staking services to an Irish custodian

A hypothetical South African validator business wants to operate Ethereum infrastructure for an Irish crypto-asset service provider (CASP) authorised to hold customers' cryptoassets. The proposed contract leaves customer relationships and withdrawal credentials with the Irish custodian. The service can be structured as technical outsourcing, but the custodian must retain effective asset control and the signing system must enforce the supplier's limited role. Customer compensation after a validation failure remains a separate question from the supplier's contractual liability.

South African bullion for a Dubai gold token issuer

A hypothetical South African bullion business wants its gold to support a token issued in Dubai, outside the Dubai International Financial Centre. Each token would reference the value of a specified quantity of gold, with redemption rights against its issuer. The business must choose between establishing an issuer within its group and supplying bullion to an independent issuer that accepts the product's legal responsibilities.