JR West Announces Foray into Banking Biz

Osaka, May 1 (Jiji Press)–West Japan Railway Co., or JR West, announced Friday a capital and business tie-up with the Resona Holdings Inc. group to make its first foray into the banking business as early as fiscal 2027, starting next April. The railroad operator plans to acquire a 20 pct stake in Kansai Mirai Bank, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Resona group, for 90 billion yen by March next year upon approval by the Financial Services Agency and make the Osaka-based bank an equity-method affiliate. “We hope to improve our life support services together with financial institutions closely related to daily life” to strengthen the company’s non-railway businesses, JR West President Shoji Kurasaka told a joint press conference in the western Japan city. “We will work on offering greater value by combining our respective strengths.” The capital and business alliance with JR West is “part of fresh efforts to strengthen our regional strategy,” Resona Holdings President Masahiro Minami said. After obtaining the banking agency business license to act on behalf of Kansai Mirai, JR West will launch a new digital financial service offering deposits and housing loans in fiscal 2027 or later. It will also develop an app that allows users to manage bank accounts and reward points, as well as make payments. Kansai Mirai Bank plans to leverage JR West’s customer base, such as railway users, amid intensifying competition for deposits. In the railway industry, East Japan Railway Co., or JR East, has entered the online banking service using the systems of Rakuten Bank, a unit of e-commerce giant Rakuten Group Inc. Hankyu Hanshin Holdings Inc. has tied up with Ikeda Senshu Bank in Osaka. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]