SMFG names deputy Nakashima as group CEO after predecessor’s death

TOKYO (Reuters) -Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui (NYSE:) Financial Group said on Thursday it has appointed Deputy President and Executive Officer Toru Nakashima as its group CEO following the death of its previous head, Jun Ohta, last week.

Nakashima’s appointment will take effect on Friday, Japan’s second-biggest lender said in a statement.

Nakashima, 60, joined then-Sumitomo Bank in 1986 and had been Ohta’s deputy since April. Ohta died of pancreatic cancer aged 65 on Saturday, the company said earlier this week.

Nakashima is also the co-head of the wholesale business of SMFG’s main banking arm.

The appointment comes as SMFG seeks to bolster its global presence through a raft of deals in Asia in recent years, including a $2 billion acquisition of an Indian non-bank lender and an investment in Vietnam’s biggest non-bank lender.

It has also invested in Jefferies Financial Group to boost its leveraged finance and cross-border M&A advisory businesses in the United States.