Profile: Mizuho Financial Group, Inc. (MFG)

Mizuho Financial Group, Inc., incorporated on January 8, 2003, offers a range of financial services, including banking, securities, trust and asset management services. It organizes its businesses in three Global Groups: the Global Corporate Group, the Global Retail Group, and the Global Asset & Wealth Management Group. The Global Corporate Group provides banking and securities products, and services to large corporations and other customers in and outside of Japan. The Global Retail Group provides a range of financial products and services, including those provided through collaborations with its group companies, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and middle-market corporations in Japan. The Global Asset & Wealth Management Group provides trust, asset management and private banking products and services. In May 2009, Mizuho Securities Co., Ltd. and Shinko Securities Co., Ltd. completed a merger. The merged entity, Mizuho Securities, is the Company’s subsidiary.

The Global Corporate Group

Mizuho Corporate Bank engages in customer relationship management through its Global RM Group, while individual financial products and services are developed and provided by the Global Investment Banking Group, the Global Transaction Banking Unit, the Global Markets Unit and the Global Alternative Investment Unit. The Company offers financial products and services to its customers by integrating these two functions. In addition, the Global Portfolio Management Unit actively manages credit risk.

The Global RM group is divided into three business units based on customer segment: the Corporate Banking Unit, the Financial Institutions & Public Sector Business Unit and the International Banking Unit. The Corporate Banking Unit engages in relationship management for large Japanese corporations and their affiliates. The Financial Institutions & Public Sector Business Unit engages in relationship management for Japanese financial institutions and public sector entities. The unit also engages in businesses related to bonds issued by corporations, financial institutions and public sector entities. The International Banking Unit engages in relationship management for foreign corporations, including foreign subsidiaries of Japanese corporations.

The Global Investment Banking Group consists of two units, the Global Syndicated Finance Unit and the Global Financial Products Unit. The Company provides its customers with financial solutions by integrating the functions of the two units. The Global Syndicated Finance Unit engages in the loan syndication business. The Global Financial Products Unit engages in structured finance, leveraged finance, real estate finance and project finance businesses.

The Global Transaction Banking Unit engages in businesses related to cash management, custody, foreign exchange, trade finance and pension-related services. With respect to Internet-related services, it provides online solutions, such as domestic and global cash management services to the Company’s customers. The Company also promotes yen settlement and clearing services, continuous linked settlement services, custody services and outsourced securities settlement services. It offers foreign exchange and trade finance products and services in cooperation with its overseas branches and offices. It provides customers of its pension-related services with pension plan proposals relating mainly to defined contribution plans by cooperating with Mizuho Trust & Banking and other group companies. Mizuho Corporate Bank also sells trust products as an agent of Mizuho Trust & Banking.

The Global Markets Unit engages in the business of investments in, and sales and trading of, financial products related to, among others, interest rates, foreign exchange, commodities and credit, as well as investment in interest rates, equities and credit. The Global Alternative Investment Unit engages in the alternative asset management business for institutional investors, including pension funds.

The Global Portfolio Management Unit manages its various portfolios, mainly its loan and equity portfolio. On May 7, 2009, former Shinko Securities and former Mizuho Securities merged to form the new Mizuho Securities. Mizuho Securities maintains securities subsidiaries in international financial centers, such as London, New York, Hong Kong and Zurich to satisfy the needs of its customers globally in the areas of trading and underwriting of corporate and government bonds and equities, as well as mergers and acquisitions advisory business, through its global network.

The Global Retail Group

Mizuho Bank provides financial services mainly to individual customers, SMEs, middle-market corporations and local governmental entities in Japan. In addition to its customer base, the Company maintains automated teller machine (ATM) networks in Japan and a range of Internet banking services. Mizuho Bank has four principal business groups: the Personal Banking Group, the Corporate Banking Group, the Business Coordination & Development Group, and the Trading and ALM Group.

The Personal Banking Group offers a range of financial products and services to individual customers, including various types of loans and deposits, as well as consulting and credit card services. The Corporate Banking Group provides products and services mainly to SMEs, and middle-market corporations. The Business Coordination & Development Group engages in businesses that require collaboration between its corporate and individual banking operations, such as transactions with individuals, such as business owners and with employees of its corporate customers, and businesses that require collaboration with securities companies, trust banks, and others within the Mizuho group. The Trading and ALM Group engages in investing in, and sales and trading of, financial instruments related to, among others, interest rates, foreign exchange and securities, including derivative instruments. Business Coordination & Development Group includes five divisions: Securities Division, Consulting Division, Business Promotion Division for Employees of Corporate Customers, e-business Development Division and Takarakuji Lottery Division.

The Global Asset and Wealth Management Group

Mizuho Trust & Banking is a trust bank that provides customers with various financial products and services with in both corporate and individual business areas. Mizuho Private Wealth Management Co., Ltd. offers private banking services. Trust & Custody Services Bank, Ltd. provides a range of products, including trust services, various custody services, as well as securities managing models, to meet the needs of customers, such as financial institutions and institutional investors. The Company’s asset management companies, Mizuho Asset Management Co., Ltd. and DIAM Co., Ltd. (an equity-method affiliate of ours), provide investment management services for its group companies and customers. Each company offers a variety of investment trust products that meet the needs of its customers.

Others

Mizuho Information & Research Institute Inc. mainly provides the Company's corporate customers with three services: system integration services, outsourcing services that support the operation of information technology systems of its customers, and consulting services related to, among others, environmental issues. Mizuho Research Institute Ltd. offers information and services mainly to corporations, financial institutions and public sector entities by integrating its research, funded research and membership services that provide various information related to, among others, managerial and economic issues. Mizuho Financial Strategy engages in advisory services for financial institutions regarding their management and revitalization of their borrowers.

The Company competes with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Japan Finance Corporation, Japan Post Bank and Development Bank of Japan.