Nomura says Italian prosecutors froze unit's assets

Nomura Holdings Inc <8604.T> said on Friday that Italian prosecutors had effected an order freezing the assets of one of its units in relation to an ongoing legal dispute over a derivatives financing deal with Italian bank Monte Dei Paschi .

Nomura Chief Financial Officer Shigesuke Kashiwagi told an earnings briefing that it had been informed on April 23 that an order to freeze Nomura Bank International's (NBI) assets in Italy had been implemented.

The assets include a small amount of cash and receivables, Kashiwagi said.

Kashiwagi said Nomura believed the move was unwarranted given that NBI was not directly involved in the derivatives trades with Monte Dei Paschi.

Kashiwagi added that the action would have no impact on the settlement of the Japanese bank's trades across Europe.

(Corrects to state that prosecutors implemented an asset-freezing order, instead of simply issuing an order.)

(Reporting by Nathan Layne; Editing by Edmund Klamann)