Witness last months failure of Hokkaido Takushoku Bank, formerly one of Japans ten giant city (commercial) banks.

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Last November two big Japanese financial firms collapsed: Yamaichi (the country's fourth-largest stockbroker) and Hokkaido Takushoku, a commercial bank.

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Add to that uncertainties in Japanese financial institutions, as highlighted last week by the collapse of the Hokkaido Takushoku Bank.

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The merger of Hokkaido Takushoku and Hokkaido Bank will combine two banks saddled with huge amounts of bad loans into one.

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This month came fresh insights into the cavalier lending practices of Hokkaido Takushoku Bank, when three of its former executives were arrested.

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Last week the Nikkei Index shot up 8% in one day when the Japanese government "accepted" the state of affairs and closed down Hokkaido Takushoku Bank.

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In November the island's main bank, Hokkaido Takushoku, from which some 60% of Hokkaido's companies had borrowed, collapsed under the weight of bad loans made to building and property companies.

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In addition to some of the former assets of Hokkaido Takushoku Bank, it will have to take on the bad loans of Nippon Credit Bank and Long-Term Credit Bank, both nationalised last year.

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Since last November, when the collapse of Hokkaido Takushoku Bank undermined confidence in all Japanese banks, Norinchukin has played a key role in preventing total meltdown, by lending money on to those big banks that the market considers too risky.

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Hokkaido Takushoku gets none.

ECONOMIST: Japanese banks: Rot | The