The Merger Window
The previous article established the diagnosis. Ninety-nine listed banks, a population shrinking by 900,000 a year, deposit growth at a crawl, non-interest income effectively negative after stripping out equity sales. The patient is stable but deteriorating. This article is about who is reaching for the scalpel. The regulatory starting gun In 2020, the Japan Fair Trade Commission lifted the antimonopoly barriers to same-prefecture bank mergers. The exemption runs for ten years. The clock expires in 2030. ...