MUFG may be hit by $470m writedown on branch losses

This comes amidst an overall profit downturn hitting most Japanese banks.

Reuters reports that Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group is reportedly planning to book a charge of $470m ($50b yen) as it closes or merges unprofitable branches in a bid to save costs. 

MUFG, which has 500 branches in Japan, is slated to announce its annual results in May. At the end of the first nine months, it had already earned 90% of a projected full-year profit of $8.87b (950b yen).

Banks across the country have been reviewing their domestic operations amidst an overall profit downturn as negative interest rates engineered by the central bank are hitting players right in the gut, with regional banks faring the worst.

Also read: Negative interest rates batter small Japanese banks hard

“Important thing is, customers do not have to visit physical branches, then we can smoothly reduce branches,” said an MUFG official on condition of anonymity.

Here’s more from Reuters.