In conjunction with the approval by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIAC) and Financial Services Agency (FSA) of the Implementation Plan for Succession of Japan Post Businesses on September 10, JBA released the Chairman’s following comments on the same day:
Today, the Government approved the Implementation Plan for Succession of Japan Post Businesses submitted for approval by Japan Post Holdings Co.
The aim of the postal reform is to rectify the distortion in the financial markets that has been caused by the bloated postal savings in its privileged position as a governmental business. However, the approved implementation plan does not contain a specific plan for reducing the postal savings businesses. Its Separate Note even envisages various expansions of the business scope while the government ownership remains intact.
We ask that the government extensively deliberate any future requests by Japan Post Bank for approval to enter into new businesses. We also ask that the deliberation be conducted from the perspectives of ensuring fair competition and no oppression of existing private institutions, ensuring no reoccurrence of scale expansion, and ensuring user conveniences are not impaired. We strongly hope that the deliberations will reach appropriate and prudent conclusions. Of course it is a prerequisite that the management system of Japan Post Bank as a private financial institution be well organized. We further ask that Japan Post Bank take concrete action to reduce its scale and the Postal Services Privatization Committee closely monitor the business scale to ensure that it is shrinking steadily.