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June 30, 2026
 

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BANKS

A new agreement between the National Police Agency and nine major banks will allow prefectural police to inquire about specific bank accounts thought to be involved in fraud schemes and quickly freeze them.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 28, 2026
NPA inks agreement with major Japan banks to hasten special fraud response
The shift from physical mail to digital requests will allow authorities to freeze accounts receiving fraud proceeds more quickly.
Mizuho Financial Group’s CEO Masahiro Kihara said on Wednesday that he expects the Bank of Japan to raise interest rates in June or July, though any modest hike is unlikely to have a major market impact.
BUSINESS
May 27, 2026
Mizuho CEO floats idea of first outsized BOJ hike since 1990
Masahiro Kihara says whether the BOJ raises rates in June or July is unlikely to have a big impact on the market unless the increase is large.
Morgan Stanley has hired Societe Generale’s former head of sales to Japan’s regional financial firms amid growing competition among global banks for business from local lenders.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 26, 2026
Morgan Stanley hires SocGen’s former head of Japan regional bank sales
Naoyuki Kumon left Societe Generale earlier this year and started at Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities this week to work in a similar role.
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group said in April that it was aware of new free float rules and speculation on taking PT Bank Danamon Indonesia private, but that nothing had been decided.
BUSINESS
May 26, 2026
MUFG exploring options for stake in Indonesian lender Danamon, sources say
Indonesia has given listed companies up to three years to increase their public floats as part of reforms to boost transparency.
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.
Mizuho Bank will have its 14.99% equity stake in Rakuten Card swapped with Rakuten Bank shares, the parent companies of the two banks said Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 21, 2026
Mizuho Bank to acquire stake in Rakuten Bank
The two megabanks will work together in services for corporate clients, aiming to bolster their earnings from lending and fee business.
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.
Seiji Jige, president of the Development Bank of Japan, speaks during an interview in Tokyo’s Chiyoda Ward on Monday.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 20, 2026
DBJ to strengthen its investment operations
The state-backed lender announced a five-year medium-term management plan that includes supplying ¥3 trillion in risk capital, including through investments.
Outstanding loans across all Japanese banks increased by 5.4% year-on-year in April, while deposits grew only 1.9%, prompting major banks to work to meet clients’ needs through various funding measures.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 20, 2026
Japan banks face challenge of loan growth outpacing deposits
For decades, deflation kept loan demand tepid and prompted savers to hoard cash. Now the country is seeing an explosion of borrowing, and deposits aren’t keeping up.
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.
MUFG Bank, Mizuho Bank and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking are all likely to gain access to Anthropic’s artificial intelligence model, Mythos.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 14, 2026
Japan megabanks set to win Mythos access after Bessent visit
Mythos access could be granted to MUFG Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking and Mizuho Bank as early as the end of May.
Hidehiro Imatsu, president of Goldman Sachs's Japan unit, says Japan continues to be a key focus for the group as it sees strong global investor interest.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 12, 2026
Goldman’s Japan revenue hits 15-year high as foreign banks shine
Net revenue at Goldman Sachs’ local brokerage arm rose 10% to ¥125.5 billion ($800 million) in the 12 months to Dec. 31, spurred by securities trading business.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda arrives for a news conference after a BOJ policy meeting in Tokyo last month.
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
May 9, 2026
Japan bets on Washington and BOJ for extra punch in yen battle
The strategy is reliant on a small cast of heavyweights and is aimed less at a dramatic turnaround than at raising the cost of betting against the yen.
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.
Mitsubishi UFJ is enhancing its services partly by leveraging expertise from technology giants.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 7, 2026
MUFG to form strategic partnership with Google
The two firms will develop a service to assist customers in online shopping and payments with the help of artificial intelligence.
Albert Park speaks during an interview in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on Monday.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 5, 2026
ADB urges countries to limit fuel subsidies to vulnerable groups
Japan has capped gasoline prices at around ¥170 per liter through subsidies after they surged to about ¥190 after the start of the Iran war.
An oil refinery under construction on the outskirts of Lagos, Nigeria. Africa already has the capital needed for development, but without better institutions, investment platforms and regulations, most domestic savings remain trapped in government debt.
COMMENTARY / World
May 4, 2026
Putting Africa’s savings to work for its people
The task now is to build the architecture that channels Africa’s savings into productive investments.
A Chinese flag flutters in front of the Shanghai Gaoqiao Company Refinery in Shanghai.
BUSINESS
May 4, 2026
China’s rare defiance of U.S. sanctions sparks showdown over banks
The latest regulations direct companies in the country not to abide by U.S. sanctions on five domestic refiners linked to the Iranian oil trade.
Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and megabanks plan to lend over $2.2 billion for initial U.S. investment projects, following Japan-U.S. tariff deals.
BUSINESS
May 3, 2026
JBIC and commercial banks to lend 2.2B dollars for U.S. investment
The total investment will reach $36 billion, with the planned loans to be the first tranche of investment in three U.S.-based projects.
Uruguay federation reportedly cancels charter flight after World Cup exit
Uruguay's Jose Maria Gimenez reacts after the team's loss against Spain at the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Friday.
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
India’s gig workers pay the price for exposure to New Delhi’s hazardous air
Rohit Kushwaha waits for a customer as he delivers his last parcel of the day, in New Delhi in January. His work as a delivery driver has helped pay the family’s bills, but has had a significant impact on his health.
Chinese and Russian bombers and fighter jets stage joint patrol near Japan
A Chinese Air Force H-6 bomber is seen during a joint patrol with Russian military aircraft on Saturday.
U.S. missile moves in Japan send China clear message: A new era has arrived
Soldiers conduct the first Typhon midrange capability live-fire exercise outside of the continental United States, firing an SM-6 missile in July last year in Australia's Northern Territory during Exercise Talisman Sabre.
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
A French ship with close ties to Japan combines arts and sciences on the high seas
Romain Troublé, the executive director of Tara Ocean Foundation, speaks to visitors aboard the Tara during a rare port call in Tokyo in April.
LGBTQ+ families are building lives Japanese lawmakers still struggle to see
Haru Ono founded Nijiiro Kazoku in 2010 after forming a same-sex stepfamily. She said the impetus for founding the organization was that she couldn’t find much reliable information out there for families such as hers in Japan.
In Kyushu’s far south, Senti.U sparks a culinary destination
Chef Yasuhiko Uchida was born in Saga Prefecture but has made his home in Kanoya, Kagoshima Prefecture, since 2012.
‘The colors speak for themselves’: How Japan’s chroma bible went global
“A Dictionary of Color Combinations” is meant to function as a quick-reference guide for artists, designers and anyone with a passing interest in aesthetics as a quantifiable pursuit.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
By Alex K.T. Martin

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