-- Mitsubishi UFJ Financial (TYO:8306) is actively seeking further acquisition or investment opportunities across Asia and other regions, with non-bank financial companies being potential targets, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing new chief executive, Masakazu Osawa.
This comes even as Japan's largest banking group completes its $4.3 billion purchase of a 20% stake in Indian consumer lender Shriram Finance, marking the largest cross-border investment in India's financial services sector to date, the news wire said.
Osawa, who took over the core banking unit of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial this month, leads a firm that has executed over $17 billion in cross-border deals over the past decade to tap into faster-growing overseas markets, the publication said.
Japanese banks are currently enjoying record profits driven by rising domestic interest rates, with MUFG expecting nearly double the net income for the past fiscal year compared to three years ago, the report said.
While Osawa acknowledged that the Middle East conflict will likely have a greater impact on Asia than on the US or Europe, he remained cautiously optimistic about the Japanese economy, it added.
(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)