Nixon began his career in 1979 at Dominion Securities in Toronto and worked in global markets, investment banking and in 1986 transferred to Tokyo to assume responsibility for the firm's operations in Japan. Dominion Securities was acquired by Royal Bank of Canada in 1987 and Nixon returned to Toronto in 1989 as a managing director of the Investment Banking Division and in 1995 was appointed head of Global Investment Banking. In 1999, Nixon became chief executive officer of RBC Capital Markets and a member of Royal Bank's Executive Committee.