Can Japan’s megabanks ignore the devil's whisper
The CEOs speak out: Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group
The CEOs speak out: Mizuho Corporate Bank
Mr Kuroyanagi was nearing the end of his stint at the helm of Japan’s largest financial group when he spoke to Euromoney in mid February; he steps down from direct managerial involvement in the commercial bank unit on April 1 but will remain president of the group’s holding company. In this interview with Lawrence White, he and Yasumasa Gomi, head of the group’s investment banking arm, discuss MUFG’s recent past, ambitions in Asia and plans to change its entire corporate culture.
Q: In a 2006 article in a US paper the interviewer quotes you as saying you thought Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group could one day rival Citigroup in size. Is that an ambition you stand by? How close are you to achieving it?
I don’t recall making exactly that comment, but it would have been just after the establishment of MUFG when we decided we wanted to be one of the top five global financial institutions. We’re now working hard to achieve that—indeed we were at one point among the top five by market value, but are now around number 10.