Citigroup raises stake in Nikko Cordial

Citigroup bank has raised its stake in Japanese brokerage firm Nikko Cordial to 68 per cent this month from 61 per cent, according…

Citigroup bank has raised its stake in Japanese brokerage firm Nikko Cordial to 68 per cent this month from 61 per cent, according to a filing to Japan's finance ministry.

Citigroup in April secured 61 per cent of Nikko Cordial's voting stock in a $7.7 billion tender offer bid, with an aim to eventually turn the company into a wholly owned subsidiary.

Securing more than a two-thirds stake would give the US banking group better control over Nikko Cordial without worrying about potential veto moves from minority investors.

New York-based Citigroup is hoping to recover credibility at the scandal-hit Nikko Cordial, which escaped a threatened delisting by the Tokyo bourse over its accounting problems.