Tomoaki Sonoda

BofA Securities Japan Co., Ltd. (BofA Securities Japan) is the wholly-owned Japanese brokerage subsidiary of Merrill Lynch International, Inc., which is ultimately owned by Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC). Founded in 1998, the firm was formerly known as Merrill Lynch Japan Securities Co., Ltd. (MLJS) and changed their name to BofA Securities Co., Ltd. in line with grobal re-branding from BofA Merrill Lynch to BofA in 2020. They subsequently became BofA Securities Japan Co., Ltd. Headquartered in Tokyo, BofA Securities Japan provides stock and bond trading, capital markets, investment banking and other advisory services to corporate clients, financial institutions and government agencies.

UBS Securities Japan Co., Ltd. (UBS-SJ) is part of the investment banking division and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Switzerland-based UBS AG (SWX: UBSN; NYSE: UBS). Located in Tokyo, the firm was established in 1988. The firm's culture emphasizes cross-business cooperation with fellow subsidiaries both in Japan and globally, combining the reach of a global group with local knowledge and insight. One of the largest securities operations in Japan, UBS-SJ provides investment products and services to Japanese institutional and corporate clients, as well as to foreign investors doing business in Japan. The firm's business is organized in three departments: FIRC (fixed income, rates and currencies), equity and investment banking. The investment banking division specializes in large-cap mergers and acquisitions, performing market research and analysis of M&A deals from a global perspective. The equity department is research-oriented and covers an extensive universe of large-cap Japanese firms. They also cover small- and mid-cap equity, and have specialist expertise in the automobile, auto parts, machinery and pharmaceutical sectors. Services provided to corporate clients include assistance with IPOs, block trades, convertible bonds, and warrants.