Japan’s Mizuho Group to establish fintech venture in June

Japan-based Mizuho Financial Group announced that it will start a fintech venture in the coming month in order to generate 100 billion yen ($894 million) in added value by 2020.

According to the reports by Reuters, the Japanese second-largest lender by assets said that there have been already 20 projects in the pipeline for the fintech venture, utilizing blockchain technology and artificial intelligence programs in areas including travel, farming and others.

Mizuho's recently appointed chief digital innovation officer, Daisuke Yamada, will head the affiliate. He stated that the challenges were cultural as well as technological and added that the bank would limit its stake in the fintech venture that is yet to be named, to less than 15 percent in order to avoid making it an equity-method affiliate.

The new entity is to be funded by trading house Itochu and venture capital and will seek to create fintech-related business, Nikkei reported. The bank is planning in June, to begin utilizing blockchain to facilitate trade finance that would speed up transactions and lower administrative costs.

Yamada also stated that the blockchain technology would also be used in manufacturing-sector supply chains as well as other applications.