Nomura's crypto unit takes stake in DeFi protocol Infinity Exchange

Laser Digital, the digital asset arm of Japanese financial services firm Nomura Holdings ( NYSE: NMR ), is investing in Infinity Exchange, an institutional-grade decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, the companies said in a release Wednesday. The Infinity protocol, founded by a Morgan Stanley ( MS ) alum, provides institutional investors a basis for benchmark interest rates, lending, borrowing and risk management in DeFi. The size of the investment was not specified. The main incentive of DeFi trading is that people can transfer funds without relying on intermediaries (i.e., banks). Switzerland-based Laser Digital, launched by Nomura ( NMR ) during the height of the crypto rout last year, is also focused on other investments within centralized finance (CeFi), web3 and blockchain infrastructure. “Infinity’s groundwork paves the way for institutional flows on-chain, new levels of rates and risk innovation,” Olivier Dang, head of Ventures at Laser Digital, said in a statement. In May 2022, Nomura dove into crypto derivatives trading.