Rakuten Trade forms new division, appoints new head

• ES division serves to provide expert information to diverse retail investors
• Headed by Rakuten pioneer Vincent Lau, formerly VP of Rakuten Research Team

RAKUTEN Trade Sdn Bhd has announced a new equity sales (ES) division, which exclusively generates thematic stock ideas and independent insights.

This serves as a means to provide expert information that can cater to diverse retail investors, many of whom are made up of millennials with different levels of trading experience, the company said in a statement.

In tandem with this, Rakuten Trade announced the appointment of Vincent Lau to the newly created role of head of equity sales, effective January 2021.

Lau (pic, right) is a pioneer member of Rakuten Trade and has over 20 years of experience in equities, corporate finance and investment banking from various local and foreign financial institutions in Malaysia.

He holds a Capital Markets Services Representative License for investment advice issued by Securities Commission (SC) Malaysia.

Rakuten Trade chief executive officer Kazumasa Mise said the company created the division in view of the changing landscape with newer retail investors entering the market.

He noted that there is a surge in non-licensed individuals, as well as social media forums that are not monitored or moderated by licensed individuals or investment firms.

Noting that it is important that trading information is backed by licensed experts to ensure there is no misleading information, he said, “Lau has already played a vital part in raising the company’s presence in the equities market in the country.

“We are confident that his significant expertise and sound understanding of the market will enable him to contribute further towards the company’s next chapter of growth,” he added.

In his most recent role as vice president of the Rakuten Research, Lau was responsible for stock and market analysis coverage. In 2018, he received The Edge's Best Call Award for his stock recommendation of Kelington Group Bhd.

Prior to joining the fully digital equities broker, he was the head of foreign equity sales, research at Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd.

The new division currently uses its Telegram Channel – Rakuten Trade Ideas – to deliver daily trading ideas, insights, intelligence and announcements of upcoming corporate webinars to the public, the company said.

To date, the ES Division has hosted over 20 public listed company webinars. These webinars provide direct corporate access to their management about their business outlook and prospects so that retail investors can make informed investing decisions.

Rakuten Trade also manages its own Facebook group - RakuRanger Community – which is moderated by licensed staff from the Rakuten Trade research team, exclusively for its own clients. It aims to draw discussions from previously unmonitored platforms onto a singular monitored one.