By Kosaku Narioka


Monex Group shares rose sharply Thursday morning following its plan to sell control of its Japanese online brokerage business to a cellphone unit of Nippon Telegraph & Telephone and form a tie-up with the acquirer.

The shares were recently 18% higher at 659 yen, the upper end of the day's trading range. Nippon Telegraph & Telephone shares were recently up 1.7%.

NTT Docomo said Wednesday after market close that it planned to make the online brokerage business, Monex Inc., a subsidiary and offer financial services and products through the tie-up to its mobile users.

The Japanese cellphone company plans to spend Y48.56 billion ($325.6 million) to acquire a 49% stake in a holding entity to be set up to own the online brokerage business, and to take a majority of the board of the holding company. Monex Group would retain a 51% stake in the holding company.

Monex Group, which also counts U.S. online brokerage TradeStation Group and cryptocurrency exchange Coincheck in its business portfolio, said the transactions were expected to be completed Jan. 4.


Write to Kosaku Narioka at kosaku.narioka@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

10-04-23 2243ET