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Tag - regional-banks

 
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July 24, 2026
 

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REGIONAL BANKS

The financial failure of Osaka-based Zentoshin has left 63 creditors with claims totaling ?115.16 billion, according to Tokyo Shoko Research.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 10, 2026
Lenders seek $700 million after Japanese payments firm¡¯s collapse
The financial failure of Osaka-based Zentoshin has left 63 creditors with claims totaling ?115.16 billion.
Kenji Miyoshi, CEO of Iyogin Holdings, says investment opportunities have arrived for Japanese government bonds.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 15, 2026
Japan¡¯s top bond-trading regional bank buys JGBs after decade break
Iyogin Holdings started testing the $7 trillion market in April with small purchases of superlong bonds, according to its CEO.
Yields on longer-term Japanese government bonds have recently risen to multidecade highs as high energy prices due to the Middle East conflict stoke inflation fears.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 25, 2026
Japan bond yield surge widens regional bank stock divide
When lenders have holdings that are vulnerable to higher yields, they¡¯re punished by investors for the unrealized losses.
Bank deposits will probably be concentrated further in the greater Tokyo area amid declining local populations and the increased use of online banks.
BUSINESS
May 20, 2026
50% of Japan¡¯s bank deposits held in greater Tokyo area
The combined deposits in the capital and Kanagawa, Saitama and Chiba prefectures stood at ?523.1 trillion as of March 31 this year.
Japan's banks have been stepping up lending to the real estate sector, but there are concerns over overheating in the real estate market and lax loan screenings.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 18, 2026
Bank lending to real estate hits record high in Japan
According to the Bank of Japan, new lending to the sector in 2025 climbed 15.1% from the previous year to ?17.8 trillion.
Aichi Financial Group President Yukinori Ito (left) and San ju San Financial Group President Gotaro Michihiro announce a plan to merge the two banks at a joint news conference in Nagoya on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 14, 2026
Japan¡¯s regional bank M&A wave to create ?11.6 trillion lender
Aichi Financial Group and San ju San Financial Group have acknowledged that a shrinking population drove their plans to consolidate.
The plan is meant to improve customer convenience as well as reduce the workload of bank employees, with banks tending to be understaffed, especially in rural areas.
BUSINESS / Tech
May 8, 2026
FSA to develop AI agent to help with customer service at regional banks
The aim is to improve customer convenience as well as reduce the workload of bank employees, with banks tending to be understaffed, especially in rural areas.
Fukuoka Financial Group has hired 10 people in the past year and plans to recruit another 20 in the period ending March 2028, said Akira Kudo, the company¡¯s head of market operations.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 14, 2026
Japan¡¯s largest regional bank takes on big names in hiring spree
Fukuoka Financial Group wants to boost its front office staff to around 100 by March 2028 as it looks to expand its ?5.8 trillion investment portfolio.
Shizuoka Financial Group President Hisashi Shibata (center), Bank of Nagoya President Ichiro Fujiwara (right) and others at a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
BUSINESS
Mar 28, 2026
Two Japanese regional banks¡¯ shares surge in latest merger pact
The move is the latest example of Japan¡¯s regional lenders joining forces in a market hit by a shrinking population.
Wakkanai Shinkin Bank¡¯s headquarters in Wakkanai, Hokkaido
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 25, 2026
A tiny bank runs dry of borrowers as Japan¡¯s population shrinks
Many rural banks are struggling, but for a small credit union in Hokkaido, the situation is extreme.
Yoshitsugu Toba, head of the markets division at Joyo Bank, says he expects the next Bank of Japan rate hike will happen in April, followed by 25 basis-point increases roughly every six months.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 2, 2026
Short-term Japan bonds hold allure for regional bank managing ?2.6 trillion
Joyo Bank is testing the country¡¯s choppy bond market by investing in shorter-term notes to secure higher returns, while avoiding longer-dated securities.
Recent mergers and lower valuations are fueling investor bets that more deals may come among Japan¡¯s 73 listed smaller banks.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 25, 2025
Rate hikes drive Japan regional banks toward mergers to survive
Decades after a debt crisis forced a wave of mergers that created mega lenders, the focus now is on consolidation in Japan¡¯s $3 trillion regional banking industry.
Hitoshi Inoue, head of Bank of Yokohama¡¯s markets business
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 23, 2025
Top Japan local bank ready to boost JGB buying when BOJ pivots
Bank of Yokohama is prepared to pile back into the domestic debt market when the central bank¡¯s peak interest rate is in sight.
Chiba Bank President Tsutomu Yonemoto (left) and Chiba Kogyo Bank President Hitoshi Umeda shake hands at a news conference on Monday in the city of Chiba.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 30, 2025
Chiba Bank and Chiba Kogyo Bank to integrate under holding firm
The merger will create Japan¡¯s second-largest regional banking group, after Fukuoka Financial Group.
Hiroshi Okada of the Financial Services Agency
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 3, 2025
FSA urges rural banks to help companies get equity funding
The FSA is working to draw up a package of policy measures to expand regional banks¡¯ roles in supporting economies hit by adverse demographic shifts.
A building which houses the Hokuhoku Financial Group headquarters in Toyama.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 30, 2025
Best-performing Japan bank plays BOJ outlook with short debt
The president of Hokuhoku Financial Group said he expects the Bank of Japan to raise interest rates in October or December if ¡°things go smoothly.¡±
The Financial Services Agency Commissioner Yutaka Ito is interviewed in Tokyo last week.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 10, 2025
FSA eager to back regional bank realignment
Ito, who took office in July, stressed that cooperation with nonfinancial businesses is also crucial for the management of regional lenders.
Yamanashi Chuo Bank's Tokyo office. The regional bank has set up an "investment advisory firm¡± to get around internal salary limits and attract talent.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 8, 2025
Rural bank in Japan finds novel way to attract talent with higher pay
Yamanashi Chuo Bank has set up an ¡°investment advisory firm¡± to get around internal salary limits, showing the lengths it¡¯s willing to go to bolster its ranks.
The deterioration of earnings at Kirayaka Bank resulted in its holding company Jimoto Holdings to book a net loss for the second straight year in fiscal 2024.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 19, 2025
Regional lender Jimoto Holdings exits government control
In the business year ended in March 2024, Jimoto Holdings incurred a net loss for the second straight year due to the deterioration of earnings at subsidiary Kirayaka Bank.
The Financial Services Agency headquarters in Tokyo. The regulator has called on regional banks to disclose the amount and market value of their high-yield loans backed by government bonds.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 19, 2025
Regulator to ramp up scrutiny of banks¡¯ repackaged JGBs
A senior official at the Financial Services Agency called on lenders to disclose the amount and market value of their holdings, sources said.
Japan scientists identify clusters of protein believed to trigger Alzheimer¡¯s disease
A team of researchers said they found a ¡°seed¡± that accelerates the amyloid beta accumulation process in the brain, naming it ¡°Peak 1 amyloid beta,¡± as seen in a mouse's brain.
Indian brothers make manga debut in Japan
Two Indian brothers made their manga debut in Japan with "Kung Fu Kung Fool" ¡ª an action-comedy series that follows the adventures of a notorious thief and a young boy.
Japan weighs regulating Pokemon cards amid trading mania
A Pokemon event is held in Jakarta on July 11
Low-income families in Japan cut food and air conditioning during summer break
Yumiko Watanabe, the chairperson of nonprofit Kidsdoor, explains the results of a survey in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward on July 1.
Iran strikes on CIA facilities prompt questions about possible Russian role
Iranian drones are displayed in an undisclosed location in Iran, in this handout image obtained on Jan. 13, 2025.U.S. officials have acknowledged that Russia has ?provided targeting ?and other support for Iran in its drone strikes on U.S. targets in the Persian Gulf region.
The sci-fi sensibilities of electronic trio Black Boboi
Black Boboi was formed in 2018 when solo artists Julia Shortreed, Utena Kobayashi and Ermhoi came together under Kobayashi¡¯s newly founded label, Bindividual.
A perfect storm: Kaze Fujii fans flock to Fuji Rock
Okayama-born singer-songwriter Kaze Fujii has carved out a distinctive place in Japanese pop since his major-label debut in 2019.
Can Japanese comedy get laughs in English? Yoshimoto Kogyo lets the jokes rip
Wes-P has millions of followers and his viral clips made him recognizable out of Japan.
The 180-day locals: Life on Japan¡¯s digital nomad visa
Christopher Flinn works remotely from Tokyo earlier this month. Japan issued 646 digital nomad visas in 2025, but tourism officials are hoping to increase that figure in the coming years, with Japan's relatively cheap cost of living and the weak yen seen as potential draws for young professionals.
Japan reveals hint of new defense spending target in fiscal blueprint
The Self-Defense Forces' Type 16 mobile combat vehicle fires during a joint live-fire drill with U.S. Marines as part of the annual Resolute Dragon exercises in Yufu, Oita Prefecture, on June 28.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

For many people, utility poles and power lines have become such a familiar part of Japan¡¯s landscape that they often go unnoticed.
Why Japan¡¯s utility poles won¡¯t be disappearing anytime soon
By Alex K.T. Martin

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