Privatisation of Japan Post can proceed following the final stage of political approval. Theupper house of the Japanese parliament, which had blocked privatisation of the post office in the
summer, has now approved the bills by a clear majority. The lower house had already given itsbacking to the measure.Under the privatisation plan, Japan Post will be re-structured into a holding company in October2007 with four subsidiaries – Postal Services, Post Office Network, Savings and Insurance. Under a10-year gradual transition, the two financial subsidiaries will be completely sold off, and amajority stake in the holding company will also be disposed of. While Japan Post will initiallybecome the world’s largest private bank following privatisation, the later sale of the Savings andInsurance businesses will leave it focused on the mail and logistics sectors in the long-term.
