WionDrive News Desk 
According to a report by Bloomberg News, Japan’s two largest banks, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, will begin divesting their strategic shareholdings in Toyota Motor Corporation, worth a combined $8.5 billion. The report, citing sources, states that the banks plan to seek opportunities to sell their shares through Toyota’s planned share buybacks.
Both banks have previously announced their intentions to gradually reduce their cross-shareholdings over time, though they declined to comment on the specific report regarding Toyota.
The unwinding of shareholdings by the banks in Toyota, one of Japan’s most prestigious companies, would underscore the growing impact of corporate governance reforms in the country. These reforms, driven by pressure from the government and the Tokyo Stock Exchange, aim to address concerns around cross-shareholdings, a long-standing practice where companies hold shares in each other to cement business ties. However, this practice has faced criticism for shielding management from activist or hostile shareholders.
Japan’s corporate governance code now requires companies to assess annually whether the purpose of a cross-shareholding is appropriate.
According to the report, the banks’ holdings in Toyota would be sold over a period of several years.
Toyota did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Last month, the automaker announced plans to buy back up to 410 million shares worth 1 trillion yen ($6.4 billion) by the end of April 2025.
In a separate development, the report also mentioned that Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. will begin divesting ¥1.32 trillion ($8.5 billion) worth of strategic shareholdings in Toyota Motor Corp., signaling a growing commitment from Japan’s big businesses to unwind their vast network of cross-held shares.
