2 More Japanese Banks Linked to Bribery Scandal
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Two of Japan’s top commercial banks, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi Ltd. and Sumitomo Bank Ltd., were implicated Monday in a widening bribery scandal that has shamed the powerful Finance Ministry.
The scandal centers on allegations that two senior ministry bureaucrats were wined and dined by financial institutions in exchange for tipping them off about ministry inspections.
The two officials--Koichi Miyagawa, 53, and Toshimi Taniuchi, 49--were arrested last month on suspicion of taking bribes from Sanwa Bank Ltd., Asahi Bank Ltd., Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank Ltd. and Hokkaido Takushoku Bank.
On Monday, prosecutors charged Miyagawa, who was the Finance Ministry’s chief inspector, with also accepting lavish entertainment from Sumitomo. Taniuchi was charged with accepting bribes from Tokyo-Mitsubishi and Sumitomo.
“For causing a stir to the public, we are very sorry and apologize,” Sumitomo said in a brief statement. Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi--Japan’s largest--released a similar statement.
The scandal has rocked the reputation of the Finance Ministry, considered the most influential agency in Japan’s powerful bureaucracy. Two top ministry officials resigned last month over the allegations.
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