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MUFG leads in clean energy asset financing this year Interest rates at Japan's domestic banks fell to an average 0.703 percent in August, the lowest since at least 1993, according to the Bank of Japan. [Extracted from the article]

Hitachi Tackles "It's Me" ATM Fraudsters With Phone Alert System Japan's elderly are often conned by phone to transfer cash Attribution Marcus Wright: editor responsible Gareth Allan: by reporter Paul Panckhurst: editor Russell Ward: editor Shingo Kawamoto: by reporter Chris Cooper: assist. [Extracted from the article]

Train fare payments with Apple Pay launched in Tokyo today Tim Cook, Apple's chief executive officer, was in Japan this month and spent some time promoting Apple Pay, posting pictures on social media of going through train station gates using a Suica-enabled iPhone. [Extracted from the article]

Toshihiro Nikai, secretary general of Japan's leading Liberal Diplomatic Party said a third supplementary budget is "one option", for the country, Kyodo news reported Monday. Attribution Marcus Wright: editor responsible Gareth Allan: by reporter Reed Stevenson: editor. [Extracted from the article]

The Bank of Japan expressed concern that some banks may take excessive risks to maintain profitability while the ability of others to lend could weaken following the introduction of its negative interest-rate policy. At the same time, some banks may shift toward "excessive risk taking" to maintain profitability as earnings from loans and securities investment decline due to low and negative rates, the central bank said. [Extracted from the article]

MUFG may open offices in Kenya and Morocco, person says Attribution Marcus Wright: editor responsible Gareth Allan: by reporter Paul Panckhurst: editor Russell Ward: editor Shingo Kawamoto: by reporter. [Extracted from the article]

Central bank restricted foreign-currency transactions in 2015 Resona Holdings Inc., the Japanese bank with ties to Indonesia dating back more than half a century, is boosting lending in rupiah following rules introduced last year to ensure greater use of the currency. [Extracted from the article]

Hiroshi Minamihashi, 54, is suspected of receiving about $1.7 million from November 2015 to June 2016 after setting up a foreign-currency deposit account using a false company name, according to a Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department official. The bank lost about 1.1 billion yen ($10.6 million) as a result of the former employee's actions through 109 transactions from 2007 to 2016, Yuichiro Himuro, a Tokyo-based spokesman for Sumitomo Mitsui, said by phone. Attribution Marcus Wright: editor responsible Gareth Allan: by reporter Russell Ward: editor Shingo Kawamoto: assist Takahiko Hyuga: by reporter. [Extracted from the article]

JR East is targeting 39% increase in tap-to-pay card usage The train operator, known as JR East, wants to help break the country's attachment to banknotes and coins by getting more and more people to use its Suica cards for uses beyond transportation. JR East is seeking to expand its e-money system 39 percent to as many as 8 million transactions a day by 2020, according to Hajime Yamada, head of the company's Suica business. [Extracted from the article]

Lenders still face shrinking loan profitability as rates fall In a sign margins may remain compressed, the benchmark three-month Tokyo interbank offered rate slid to a record-low 0.05818 percent on Monday, while bank shares fell for a second day, losing more of the gains made after the BOJ's Sept. 21 decision. Because the average duration of banks' bond holdings is between two and three years, lenders won't benefit much from the BOJ propping up yields on 10-year government bonds, he said. [Extracted from the article]

Steeper yield curve would ease pressure on interest income Japanese bank shares jumped after the central bank decided to target the bond yield curve and refrain from deepening negative interest rates, easing concerns that monetary policy will continue to erode their profits. [Extracted from the article]

Japanese banks are the latest big short for a top-ranked hedge fund, thanks to the central bank's negative interest rate policy. Horseman Capital Management's hedge fund run by Shannon McConaghy is the best of 56 Japan-focused long-short equity strategies tracked by Eurekahedge Pte, after the manager started shorting regional banks at the end of last year. Banks surged today after the Bank of Japan decided to target the bond yield curve and refrain from deepening negative interest rates. [Extracted from the article]

The Tokyo-based bank sees an opportunity to earn more fees from employers that are shifting toward 401(k)-style retirement plans as sub-zero rates make it more difficult for them to meet existing pension obligations. The Bank of Japan's negative-rate policy is driving momentum for companies to reconsider their employee pension arrangements, Imuta said in an interview in Tokyo. Mizuho plans to take advantage of its April 2016 conversion to an internal company structure to bolster cooperation between its bank and trust units on the pension business, Imuta said. [Extracted from the article]

Steeper yield curve fueled rally that's now reversing course Speculation the Bank of Japan may act to steepen the sovereign yield curve, which would make lending more profitable, helped fuel a 30 percent rebound for the Topix Banks Index this summer. [Extracted from the article]

Nowcast will crunch retail transactions to predict earnings The move comes as pressure from Japan's financial regulator prompts brokerages to move away from a long-standing practice of gleaning information from companies about their performance before earnings figures are released. Hayashi sees this as an opportunity for Nowcast to find other ways to estimate companies' results and sell the research to active investors such as hedge funds. [Extracted from the article]

New iPhone to be compatible with Japan's e-money payments Both Apple and Google are entering cashless payments in Japan. [Extracted from the article]

TransferWise Ltd., the U.K. money-transfer startup, began operations in Japan Wednesday, its latest effort to shake up banks' dominance of the market for sending cash abroad. Attribution Marcus Wright: editor responsible Gareth Allan: by reporter Paul Panckhurst: editor Russell Ward: editor Shingo Kawamoto: by reporter. [Extracted from the article]

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc.'s banking unit and its two biggest Japanese peers plan to sign a non-binding agreement with Saudi Arabian Oil Co. in Tokyo this week to expand lending to the state-run firm as it considers an initial public offering, people with knowledge of the matter said. To contact the reporters on this story:Shigeru Sato in Tokyo at ssato10@bloomberg.net;Shingo Kawamoto in Tokyo at skawamoto2@bloomberg.net;Gareth Allan in Tokyo at gallan11@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story:Ben Scent at bscent@bloomberg.net;Marcus Wright at mwright115@bloomberg.netRussell Ward. [Extracted from the article]

E-money is a small but growing part of retail payments By tapping Japan's expanding FeliCa infrastructure, Apple could foster growth in e-money usage through its Apple Pay service and entice more people to buy its phones, which are the top sellers in Japan. [Extracted from the article]

Average spending by foreign tourists is falling as yen gains After raising its basic room rates by 10-15 percent last year, the Imperial currently charges an average room rate of 35,000 yen ($343) to 37,000 yen, approaching the average rate in the late 1980s, according to Sadayasu. [Extracted from the article]

Asian currencies look set for a bumpy ride over the next three months after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said Friday that the case for an interest-rate rise has strengthened, amid growing speculation the hike could come as early as next month. Suehiro doesn't see any impact on the BOJ's policy review, although Yellen's comments may lead rates in Japan to rise. [Extracted from the article]

Company planning new iPhone model with Sony's FeliCa chip Attribution Marcus Wright: editor responsible Gareth Allan: by reporter Alistair Barr: editor Mark Gurman: by reporter Andrew Pollack: editor Tom Giles: editor responsible. [Extracted from the article]

Japan's biggest banks are running out of room to sell their government bond holdings, pushing the central bank closer to the limits of its record monetary easing. Japan Post Bank Co. and the nation's three so-called megabanks have almost halved their sovereign bond holdings to 114 trillion yen ($1.1 trillion) since March 2013, the month before the Bank of Japan began buying the securities on an unprecedented scale to end deflation. [Extracted from the article]

Bank shares rallied following the BOJ's announcement on Friday, with the Topix Banks Index having the biggest two-day gain since February after central bank Governor Haruhiko Kuroda also ordered a review of its policies. Instead of expanding negative rates, as many market-watchers had predicted, the BOJ boosted its purchases of exchange-traded funds and doubled the scale of a program to support banks' U.S. dollar lending. [Extracted from the article]

Bank's shares have rallied on speculation BOJ won't cut more Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc.'s first-quarter profit fell more than analysts estimated as the central bank's negative interest-rate policy sapped lending income and the company slowed sales of its shareholdings. [Extracted from the article]

Bank shares surged after BOJ kept benchmark rate at -0.1% Mizuho Financial Group Inc.'s first-quarter profit fell 16 percent as negative interest rates eroded lending income and the bank slowed sales of its shareholdings. [Extracted from the article]

Japanese banks including Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. jumped in Tokyo trading after the central bank refrained from expanding negative interest rates and made it easier for lenders to obtain dollar funding. Bank shares remain among the worst performers in Japan this year after the introduction of negative rates shrank their lending profitability, with Mizuho Financial Group Inc. expected to follow Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. in posting lower first-quarter profit when it reports later Friday. [Extracted from the article]

Japan banks face interest income headwinds: Citigroup's Kogi Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc.'s first-quarter profit fell 31 percent as negative interest rates eroded lending income, overshadowing a rebound in trading. [Extracted from the article]

Japan's biggest banks are making good on their pledges to trim their stakes in client companies, a move that may help to prop up earnings being squeezed by negative interest rates. The three banks will begin reporting first-quarter earnings this week, providing the clearest evidence yet of how much the Bank of Japan's negative-rate policy is eroding interest income. [Extracted from the article]

Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ to withdraw on July 15, MOF says Japanese banks have been cutting their holdings of government bonds in the three years since the Bank of Japan began buying the securities on an unprecedented scale to defeat deflation. With yields on most sovereign debt now below zero, financial institutions have even less reason to buy the securities in a market that has become less liquid since the BOJ stepped up bond purchases. [Extracted from the article]

This year has been a tough one for investors in Japan's biggest banks. To contact the reporter on this story:Gareth Allan in Tokyo at gallan11@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story:Marcus Wright at mwright115@bloomberg.netRussell Ward Attribution Marcus Wright: editor responsible Gareth Allan: by reporter Russell Ward: editor. [Extracted from the article]

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial expresses commitment to U.K. market Daiwa warned in a recent memo to London staff that a vote to leave the EU would have a "profound impact" on its European operations, which are based in the city. [Extracted from the article]

Japan Post Tells Shareholders Negative-Rate World Is "Severe" Postal bank holds first investor meeting since November IPO "I hope Japan Post will be able to enter lending businesses in the future and compete with Japan's megabanks", said Akihito Takayama, a 52-year-old company employee who bought 500 shares in the IPO. [Extracted from the article]

Japanese Banks See "Severe" Impact If BOJ Expands Negative Rates Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said Thursday that he's aware the negative-rate strategy unveiled in January could weigh on banks, while adding that he doesn't believe it will directly eat into their profits. Attribution Marcus Wright: editor responsible Gareth Allan: by reporter Paul Panckhurst: editor Russell Ward: editor Shingo Kawamoto: by reporter. [Extracted from the article]

Japan's financial regulator plans to survey banks to determine how they manage the risk of currency-trading partners failing to honor payments, according to a document obtained by Bloomberg News. Attribution Marcus Wright: editor responsible Gareth Allan: by reporter Russell Ward: editor Brian Fowler: editor Takako Taniguchi: by reporter John Detrixhe: assist. [Extracted from the article]

Banks that avoided credit crisis face risks in the oil patch "Even based on oil prices at the moment, we're absolutely not seeing the recording of any major concentration of credit costs", Mizuho's President Yasuhiro Sato said at a May 13 briefing on the bank's financial results. [Extracted from the article]

Bond market functionality has deteriorated, BOJ survey shows Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd.'s move to consider quitting as one of 22 primary dealers is the latest sign of stress in a debt market that's struggling to cope with the Bank of Japan's unprecedented monetary stimulus. [Extracted from the article]

"It's shocking", said Mari Iwashita, chief market economist at SMBC Friend Securities Co. "The biggest market player is posing the question of whether the current BOJ policy is appropriate or not". Attribution Chikako Mogi: assist by reporter Maiko Takahashi: assist Marcus Wright: editor responsible Gareth Allan: by reporter Russell Ward: editor Shigeki Nozawa: assist Shingo Kawamoto: by reporter Kyoko Shimodoi: assist Tomoko Yamazaki: editor Isabel Reynolds: assist Garfield Reynolds: editor responsible. [Extracted from the article]

Negative interest-rate stimulus is half working in Japan, as lenders cut government bond holdings by the most in almost three years, only to hoard proceeds at the central bank. At the same time, banks are moving toward longer-dated bonds in search of positive yields, leaving them vulnerable to a sudden spike in interest rates similar to 2003, BOJ board member Takehiro Sato said in a speech on June 2. [Extracted from the article]

Prime Minister Abe said last week he would delay tax increase LDP party rules on leadership mean Abe, who was re-appointed leader in September 2015, would be eligible for nomination in September 2018, Inada said. [Extracted from the article]

"Non-interest income will grow significantly", Sato says "One of our strengths is the ability to generate income by cooperating among our group bank, trust bank and securities functions", Sato said. [Extracted from the article]

Loan growth slows, margins narrow, bad debts rise, costs swell The following charts show how deposits are exceeding loans at Japanese banks now charged for parking cash at the BOJ. They also reflect how sub-zero rates erode margins amid rising bad-loan provisions and administrative costs. [Extracted from the article]

Deal to service Resona's customers could be announced in May Higashi, 59, said more than 2,800 of Resona's clients, mostly small and mid-sized businesses, are already operating in the U.S., where economic growth is outpacing Japan's. Attribution Marcus Wright: editor responsible Gareth Allan: by reporter Russell Ward: editor Shingo Kawamoto: by reporter Darren Boey: editor. [Extracted from the article]

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. sees full-year profit falling 11 percent as negative interest rates squeeze loan profitability and bad-loan costs increase. Negative interest rates will have a 100 billion-yen impact on this fiscal year's profit, Hirano said. [Extracted from the article]

Net interest income, or revenue from lending minus payments on deposits, fell 11 percent last fiscal year to 1 trillion yen, Mizuho said. At Sumitomo Mitsui, net interest income fell 5.5 percent and bond and securities trading profit slid 12 percent. [Extracted from the article]

Biggest lenders begin reporting earnings and forecasts Friday Japan's biggest banks may forecast the lowest profit in four years as negative interest rates squeeze lending margins and the commodity slump risks souring energy loans. [Extracted from the article]

The bank now has about 60 trillion yen in a portfolio that seeks to earn higher returns by investing in assets such as private equity and real estate, Ikeda said. Negative rates are "certainly not a plus", said Ikeda, who estimates their impact on Japan Post Bank's earnings to be less than 20 billion yen. [Extracted from the article]

The recent jump in the yen is clearly a one-sided speculative move that is extremely concerning and Japan is ready to take action if needed, Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso said on Saturday. Attribution Maiko Takahashi: by reporter Gareth Allan: by reporter Brett Miller: editor responsible Jodi Schneider: editor James Mayger: editor. [Extracted from the article]