Bank of Yokohama Set to Acquire Kanagawa Bank

Jiji Press

9:00 JST, January 27, 2023

TOKYO (Jiji Press) — Bank of Yokohama, operating chiefly in Kanagawa Prefecture, plans to acquire Kanagawa Bank, a second-tier regional bank based in Yokohama, according to informed sources.

Bank of Yokohama, part of Concordia Financial Group Ltd., hopes to take full control of Kanagawa Bank through a tender offer, the sources said. The acquisition is expected to be worth several billions of yen.

The takeover plan will be announced in early February at the earliest, according to the sources.

In a statement released Thursday, Concordia Financial Group said it is true that Bank of Yokohama is considering a tender offer to acquire 100% ownership of Kanagawa Bank.

As of the end of March 2022, Bank of Yokohama was the fourth-largest shareholder of Kanagawa Bank, holding an equity stake of 7.76%.

Kanagawa Bank is believed to have agreed to the tender offer plan, according to the sources.

The revenue base of Japanese regional banks has been hurt by prolonged low interest rates and falling population in the country. Bank of Yokohama and Kanagawa Bank, both being Kanagawa-based banks, hope to work together to survive in such harsh environment including by sharing their business management knowhow and streamlining their operations.

Efforts to integrate operations among regional banks within the same prefecture are spreading across Japan.