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Provisional Translation

Press Conference by KATO Katsunobu, Minister of Finance and Minister of State for Financial Services

(Excerpt)

(Friday, January 17, 2025, 11:00 am to 11:09 am)

Q.

Regarding the issue concerning safe-deposit boxes at Mitsubishi UFJ Bank, Ltd., the bank published its recurrence prevention measures yesterday. The FSA has issued an order to request reporting and must have received a report from the bank. Could you explain your view on future administrative measures to be taken?

A.

First of all, banks are required to offer high credibility and have a highly public nature. Mitsubishi UFJ Bank is one of the banks representing Japan. It is very regrettable that such case occurred in the bank and its former employee was arrested.
Regarding the bank's recurrence prevention measures, the FSA received a report submitted by the bank in response to the issued order yesterday. At present, the FSA is scrutinizing the report, as to whether the bank analyzed the causes in an appropriate manner and whether the recurrence prevention measures are truly effective and sufficient.
At the same time, the FSA will closely conduct monitoring so that the bank will properly implement sufficient recurrence prevention measures.

Q.

Regarding the same issue, President and CEO Hanzawa presented the intention to find a certain direction for its safe-deposit box business. What do you think of the fact that banks are engaging in safe-deposit box business?

A.

I understand that suspected money laundering risks have been pointed out regarding the safe-deposit box business.
Financial institutions are required to properly conduct confirmation at the time of transaction and report suspicious transactions under the Act on Prevention of Transfer of Criminal Proceeds as countermeasures against money laundering, and to also conduct customer management in accordance with risks, such as individual customers' attributes and their use of services.
Keeping them in mind, I think that the FSA needs to conduct deliberations on appropriate safe-deposit box services by financial institutions.

Q.

Do you mean that the deliberations you mentioned include requests to banks to make reports, implement certain research or the like?

A.

I mean that the FSA will deliberate on what safe-deposit box services should be like. In the process of the deliberations, we may naturally need to check how the services are provided in reality, as you said, but in consideration of what we ascertain through such checking, we will deliberate on the nature of the safe-deposit box business.

Q.

Will the deliberations be held at the Financial System Council or the like?

A.

A specific place for the deliberations has not yet been determined, but I think that we need to have outside intellectuals participate, instead of having deliberations only among the FSA.

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