Asahi Bank and Tokai Bank announced Thursday they will integrate their operations under a holding company next October -- moving up their original schedule by more than a year.
The decision by the two city banks to bring the consolidation forward signals an acceleration in the reorganization of the nation's banking sector.
The establishment of the holding company is a followup to the two banks' comprehensive alliance announced in September 1998. If realized, the integration will create a new banking group with combined assets of some 59 trillion yen, becoming the nation's third-largest city bank in terms of assets.