A Japanese bank has purchased a U.S. bond firm.

A subsidiary of the Industrial Bank of Japan, J. Henry Schroder Bank & Trust Co., has agreed to buy Aubrey G. Lanston & Co., a major dealer in U.S. government bonds, for $234 million. J. Henry Schroder is 75.1% owned by the Japanese bank. The acquisition would boost the assets of J. Henry Schroder Bank & Trust to about $3.5 billion from $2 billion, making it one of the 100 largest commercial banks in the United States. Lanston, privately owned, is one of 35 primary dealers in U.S. government securities recognized by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.