Online brokerages kabu.com Securities Co. and Me Net Securities Co. said Friday they will merge by March 31, creating the third-largest online brokerage in terms of customer accounts.
Me Net is 74.9 percent owned by a group of companies led by Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group Inc., while kabu.com is 28.7 percent owned by a group led by UFJ Holdings Inc.
The two firms said in a joint statement they are merging in conjunction with the upcoming merger of Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group and UFJ Holdings.
After the merger, kabu.com will be the surviving company, with a total of 350,000 customer accounts, the two firms said.
The nation's largest net brokerage in terms of the number of accounts is E*Trade Securities Co., followed by Monex Inc.
"The (MTFG-UFJ) merger will enable the new brokerage to approach the overwhelming customer base of the two groups, with a combined 40 million individual customer accounts and 60 trillion yen in individual depositors' savings," the securities companies said.
Tokyo-based kabu.com has distinguished itself from other online brokerages by allowing customers to pay brokering commissions directly from their bank accounts.
The new brokerage will seek to win over MTFG's customers by offering them a similar payment service.