Japanese lender Nomura is to retrench from its European and US businesses to focus on Asia including Japan, but not before it carries through heavy cuts in the region, according to reports. 

Japan's largest bank, which in 2008 bought the European and Asian businesses of defunct investment bank Lehman Brothers, last week announced it would make 45 per cent of its cost cuts in Europe, and 21 per cent in the US, with the remainder to take place in Asia including Japan, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. The firm said 45 per cent of the cuts would take place in the form of job cuts.

These are part of a previously announced US$1 billion cost-cutting programme which the lender hopes will help it return to its roots as an Asian-centric bank, according to newly-instated chief executive Koji Nagai, quoted in the story.

In July, former CEO and Kenichi Watanabe and former chief operating officer Takumi Shibata, who helped orchestrate the Lehman acquisition, resigned, following leaks of insider information to clients of the bank.

Nagai was quoted as saying that the deal had not been successful. "People ask me whether the Lehman acquisition failed…and with this performance, we can't say it's been a success."

Nomura has an overseas work force of 12,800 and one of 22,000 in its home market. About 30 per cent of Nomura's current staff came over from Lehman Brothers.