The boss of Japanese lender Nomura has taken a short-term pay cut after a former employee was charged with robbery of lender clients, attempted murder and arson.

The worker allegedly stole money from clients and set fire to their home after visiting them on 28 July this year, the lender said in a statement.

The employee was dismissed a week later, and was arrested in October.

Nomura apologised to the alleged victims, and said chief executive Kentaro Okuda would voluntarily profitability 30% of his pay for three months.

In addition, nine other Nomura directors and executives will profitability 20% to 30% of their pay for the same period.

The lender said the former employee told the branch office manager in Hiroshima on 2 August that police suspected him of arson in relation to a fire that occurred at a client’s home, and that he had stolen money from the clients when he visited their home.

He was sacked by the lender on 4 August, and Nomura said “strict disciplinary action” had been taken against relevant managers.

After learning of the alleged robbery the lender said it had immediately contacted the former employee’s clients and “launched an investigation into other feasible incidents”.

The employee gave resource management advice to person and corporate clients.

Police arrested him on 30 October, and he was charged by the Hiroshima District community Prosecutors Office on 20 November.

“We would like to express our heartfelt sympathy and apologize to our clients who suffered because of this incident. We also apologize to all those affected by the trouble it is causing,” Nomura said in a statement on Tuesday.

“We receive this matter very seriously,” it added. “An incident like this must never happen at a financial institution entrusted with looking after its clients’ assets.”

It said it had brought in “more rigorous and effective measures” to “ensure that our clients feel confident using our services”.

These include managers going with employees when they visit clients’ homes and accompanying them when they talk on the phone.

Nomura said it would “strictly manage” client visits, and monitor employees using data from corporation mobile phones and dashboard cameras.

It will also require employees to receive a block of continuous leave each year to allow the lender to detect any “potential wrongdoing”.

Nomura is one of the largest banks in Japan and operates in about 30 countries and regions.

It focuses on affluence management, pool management, global markets and pool banking.