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| Debra Hazelton, general manager of
Mizuho Corporate Bank’s branch in
Sydney |
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With a background in capital markets and treasury, degrees in classical Japanese literature and finance, and over a decade spent in Japan, Debra Hazelton, general manager of Mizuho Corporate Bank’s branch in Sydney, understands the Japanese and Australian business connection.
Upon accepting the position in 2008, Hazelton became the first non-Japanese, and first female general manager and country head in the bank’s history.
“We want to make the bank stronger in Australia by working more effectively within the local financial landscape, and utilizing our solid Australian and global networks. We benefit from the strength of the bank’s very strong Japanese and Asia-wide footprints. We also have strong teams in London and New York on whom we can depend. In Australia, we are leveraging off our local and Japanese expertise in order to further innovate, and focus on building diversity and depth in our business lines,” says Hazelton.
Non-Japanese companies account for about 80 percent of the Sydney branch’s asset base, with Japanese companies making up the rest. Its activities in the country include corporate finance, project finance, cross-border syndication, leverage finance, trade finance, cash management and treasury products (FX, derivatives, deposits and money market).
Mizuho Corporate Bank is the corporate banking arm of the Mizuho Financial Group, the second-largest financial services company in Japan.
“With close to 70 offices globally, we are part of a well-established and growing global banking network, with access to a large and diverse range of financial services. In Sydney, we strive to continually meet the sustainable growth needs of our clients, and recognize a number of new significant business synergies between Australian and Japanese firms,” says Hazelton.
“Both countries share a long-term, stable, supportive and trusting relationship, and we are seeing a new spark in that relationship through various collaborations such as the provision of social and economic infrastructure, as well as other joint trade and investment opportunities across the Asia-Pacific region,” she adds.
While the global financial crisis has had a serious negative impact on sections of the financial landscape in Australia, Hazelton remains pleased with the new opportunities that have emerged as a consequence, such as the increased interaction between businesses and government in industry discussions.
“The Australian and Japanese economies can only benefit from more open channels of communication and we are working to further facilitate these important economic dialogues. We understand we have an important role to play in the future of the Japanese and Australian business relationship,” she says.
'We want to make the bank stronger in Australia by working more effectively within the
local fi nancial landscape, and utilizing our solid Australian and global networks'
www.mizuhocbk.co.jp/english/
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