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market in the prefecture was saturated, it was a really risky move,” and “the expansion of business into Russia has come at the expense of the development of the firm.” While the
Russian subsidiary claimed a 240 million yen in pretax profits in December 2004, Michinoku injected 2.1 billion yen of capital into the subsidiary in August of that year. One former employee said that Michinoku was using capital injections to eliminate the losses by the subsidiary.
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Daidōji had eyed the
Russian market since the collapse of the Soviet Union, and finally established the subsidiary on July 7, 1999, becoming the first subsidiary of a Japanese bank to open in Russia. Following this, Michinoku opened a branch in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk on August 12, 2002, and then a branch
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There is some controversy behind this move, however. When Daidōji first initiated the
Russian operations, he said that he did not expect to turn profits for 5–10 years. Industry experts and former employees have criticized this move, claiming that “while the reason for the expansion was that the
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Michinoku Bank was the bank that was used in the “Anita
Scandal.” This scandal involved a Japanese businessman for the Aomori Prefectural Public Housing Corporation who was arrested for funneling funds in excess of 13 million US dollars to his Chilean wife, Anita Alvadoro. Some of this money was
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as mascots for the bank. These mascots were used until 2004, when the bank decided to stop using the characters in order to rehabilitate its image as the “Tom and Jerry Bank.” In 1995, Michinoku opened a representative office in Yuzhno-Sakhalin, and four years later established a subsidiary in
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In April 2005, Michinoku came under fire for losing information over an estimated 1.3 million customers. This prompted a response from the
Japanese Financial Services Agency that Michinoku reform its business practices. In May, the company’s long serving president, Kosaburo Daidōji, left the
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suffix “-sama” that is often used with a company’s customers. However, the ATMs used this suffix when customers deposited money. Ina speculated that the reason for this was that those customers that deposited money into the bank were true customers, while those who withdrew money were not
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One distinctive feature of
Michinoku is its expansion into the Russian financial market. This has been said to be one legacy from former president Kosaburo Daidōji. Daidōji was said to have developed an interest in Russia after hearing from his father, who had studied in
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on July 7, 2003. Presently, the
Russian operations are said to have a scale of around 10 billion yen and around 7,300 personal accounts, including an account held by Russian pop group
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Kappei Ina, a local radio talk show host, allegedly claimed that when customers withdrew money at
Michinoku
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customers. One week after this was aired, the
Michinoku ATMs displayed the honorific “-sama” suffix.
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Michinoku Bank
Investigation: Legacy of the Daidoji System (part 4) – the Maverick Path
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to form the current Michinoku Bank. In January 1980, Michinoku adopted the use of
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Branches: 111 (87 in Aomori Prefecture, 21 outside of Aomori, 3 in Russia)
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Assets: approximately 1.8 trillion yen (approximately US$ 16.3 billion)
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in the name of a Japanese bank. Michonoku Bank, while focused on the
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The current Michinoku Bank can trace its origins to 1894, when the
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company. Daidōji died on July 21, 2005, at the age of 80.
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Michinoku Bank: Fate of the Specialty Russian Business
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Employees: 1,212 (excluding subsidiary corporations)
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209:Member: Regional Banks Association of Japan
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247:(ATMs), the display did not display the
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382:Companies based in Aomori Prefecture
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377:Government-owned companies of Japan
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147:Michinoku Finance (Hong Kong) Ltd
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256:used to build a lavish house in
96:Kabushiki-gaisha Michinoku Ginkō
76:http://www.michinokubank.co.jp/
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325:English part of official site
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222:was established. In 1976,
183:The Michonoku Bank (Moscow)
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268:Russian Business Expansion
40:Michinoku Bank head office
245:automatic teller machines
206:President: Yasuo Sugimoto
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372:Regional banks of Japan
193:As of March 31, 2005
139:Saitama Prefectures
63:Number of employees
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239:Points of interest
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220:Aomori Shogyo Bank
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111:Aomori Prefecture
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54:Headquarters
366:Categories
296:References
283:Khabarovsk
224:Seiwa Bank
175:Khabarovsk
90:株式会社みちのく銀行
249:honorific
151:Hong Kong
287:t.A.T.u.
235:Moscow.
159:Shanghai
123:Hokkaidō
115:hiragana
214:History
189:Profile
72:Website
46:Founded
275:Europe
177:, and
171:Moscow
167:Russia
137:, and
135:Miyagi
107:Aomori
258:Chile
163:China
155:Wuhan
143:Tokyo
131:Iwate
127:Akita
157:and
103:bank
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