Editoial

17:18 JST, July 14, 2025

Serious misconduct carried out by a financial institution that plays a key role in a regional economy is unacceptable. Iwaki Shinkumi, a credit cooperative based in Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture, and the Financial Services Agency must urgently clarify the whole picture of the wrongdoing and implement measures to prevent the recurrence of similar cases.

According to a report released in late May by its third-party committee, Iwaki Shinkumi repeatedly conducted improper lending to major clients, whose financial condition had deteriorated, and concealed the practice for about 20 years starting in 2004.

The credit cooperative created shell companies and engaged in backdoor lending. It also opened fake accounts by using the names of general depositors without their consent.

Iwaki Shinkumi’s loan balance stands at about ¥120 billion, and there were 1,293 cases of loan irregularities involving a total of........

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