Shinsei Bank
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Shinsei Bank, Ltd. 株式会社新生銀行 |
|
Type | Public KK (TYO: 8303 ) |
---|---|
Founded | 1952 (as Long-Term Credit Bank of Japan) |
Headquarters | Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan and 39 other offices |
Key people | Masamoto Yashiro, Chairman Thierry Porte, President |
Industry | Banking |
Revenue | ¥177 billion (1.57 billion USD) (2004) |
Net income | ¥67.4 billion (600 million USD) (2004) |
Employees | 2,052 (2005) |
Website | www.shinseibank.com |
Shinsei Bank, Ltd. (株式会社新生銀行 Kabushiki-gaisha Shinsei Ginkō?) is a Japanese commercial bank.
Contents |
[edit] History
Shinsei Bank was formerly a trust bank, Long-Term Credit Bank of Japan (日本長期信用銀行 Nippon Chōki Shin'yō Ginkō?), which had a government monopoly on the issuance of many long-term debt securities. Following the collapse of the Japanese real estate bubble in 1989, the bank was riddled with bad debts. The government nationalized the bank in 1998; after several proposed mergers with domestic banks, the company was sold to an international group led by US-based Ripplewood Holdings in March 2000, the first time in history that a Japanese bank came under foreign control. Ripplewood restructured the bank and relaunched it as "Shinsei Bank," meaning "Reborn Bank" in Japanese, in June 2000 with new management and services.
Long-Term Credit Bank of Japan was delisted from the stock market at the time of bankruptcy. The IPO of Shinsei Bank was held in February of 2004. In April of 2004, the bank exchanged its long-term credit banking license for a standard commercial banking license.
Many of Shinsei's managers have previous experience working for foreign financial instutitions in Japan, such as CEO Thierry Porte (formerly of Morgan Stanley) and CIO Jay Dvivedi (formerly of Citibank) [1].
[edit] Services
Shinsei Bank offers a number of unique services as part of its basic "PowerFlex" savings account, including:
- Free 24-hour ATM service, with locations in many Tokyo Metro, Keikyu and Kintetsu stations, as well as Seven-Eleven and Daily Yamazaki convenience stores
- "Cash back" for any ATM fees incurred when making withdrawals overseas
- Banking office hours until 7 PM in many locations (most Japanese banks close much earlier, often as early as 3 PM)
- Foreign currency deposits as part of the standard account package (unique to Shinsei and Tokyo Star Bank)
- Instant cash card issuance for customers opening new accounts in person
Shinsei also gears many of its services toward resident foreigners in Japan, with English-language online banking and telephone support, as well as no requirement for a personal seal in order to open an account.
Many Shinsei branches are combined with Starbucks coffee shops.
[edit] References
- Saving the Sun : A Wall Street Gamble to Rescue Japan from Its Trillion-Dollar Meltdown by Gillian Tett
- "Japan's Shinsei Midsize Bank, Supersize Ambitions," Business Week, June 13, 2005.