Japanese Bank Asks to Be Nationalized

Japan’s troubled Long-Term Credit Bank of Japan Ltd. said that it formally asked to be nationalized under new legislation aimed at revitalizing the country’s crisis-ridden financial sector. The LTCB submitted its request to Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi just hours after the financial stabilization legislation took effect, said a bank spokesman. If approved, it would mark the first government takeover of a bank since the end of World War II. LTCB has struggled under a massive load of bad loans. The Tokyo Stock Exchange suspended trading in shares of the bank before the market opened today.. LTCB shares had fallen to a record low of 17 cents earlier this week in anticipation of the move toward nationalization.