The unique bank established by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government provides swift financing to cash-strapped small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
The bank, whose creation was proposed by Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara, plans to extend loans to small businesses without collateral. It also aims to support firms whose liabilities exceed their assets, as long as they have stable cash flows.
The new bank also plans to issue depositors "smart cards" with multiple functions, including those of bank, credit, railway and frequent-flyer cards.
The bank said that as of 3 p.m., 185 customers had visited its headquarters in Tokyo's Otemachi district and it had received 403 calls from parties seeking financing and another 550 calls asking about deposits.
For its initial business year, the bank aims to extend corporate loans worth 270bn yen and accept 460bn yen in savings deposits, it said.
