Bank Day

What Is Bank Day?

Every July 1st is also "Bank Day" (銀行の日, Ginkō no Hi) in Japan. On July 1, 1893, Japan's first comprehensive Banking Ordinance (銀行条例, Ginkō Jōrei) came into force — establishing the modern legal framework for Japan's banking system. The ordinance regulated the establishment and operation of banks, set capital requirements and reserve ratios, and created the supervisory framework that made Japan's banking system a reliable foundation for the country's industrialization and economic development.

Japan's Modern Banking History

Japan's first modern bank — the First National Bank (第一国立銀行, Dai-ichi Kokuritsu Ginkō) — was established in 1873, modeled on the American National Banking System. By the 1880s, a proliferation of national banks had created a need for more comprehensive regulation — providing the context for the 1893 Banking Ordinance. The Bank of Japan (日本銀行, Nihon Ginkō), established in 1882 as Japan's central bank, provided the monetary policy framework within which commercial banks operated.

Japan's Banking System Today

Japan's banking system today encompasses the Bank of Japan (central bank), three "megabanks" (Mitsubishi UFJ, Sumitomo Mitsui, and Mizuho), regional banks serving prefectural economies, trust banks, credit unions (shinkin banks), and Japan Post Bank. The system is among the world's largest by assets, though it has been challenged by deflation, low interest rates, and demographic decline in the decades since Japan's 1990s financial crisis.

Banking Crises and Reform

Japan experienced a severe banking crisis in the 1990s following the collapse of the "bubble economy" — with non-performing loans threatening the stability of major banks and requiring unprecedented government intervention. The banking system's restructuring through consolidation (creating the three megabanks from a much larger number of major banks), bad loan disposal, and regulatory reform reshaped Japanese banking fundamentally, providing the more stable, if less dynamic, banking landscape of the 21st century.

Fun Facts

• Tansu savings: Japan is estimated to hold approximately ¥50-100 trillion in "tansu savings" (タンス貯金, tansu chokin) — cash stored at home — reflecting deep-rooted Japanese habits of keeping physical cash reserves that the banking system cannot capture in deposits.
• QR code payments: Japan was relatively slow to adopt smartphone-based payment systems compared to China, but has seen rapid growth in QR code payments (PayPay, d払い, LINE Pay) since the late 2010s — rapidly shifting the payment landscape that Bank Day's founding institutions helped create.