Finance Minister Hiroshi Mitsuzuka and other ministry officials Monday attempted to underplay the fact that the failure of Hokkaido Takushoku runs counter to the ministry's oft-repeated pledge that the nation's top 20 banks would not be allowed to fail.
At a morning news conference, Mitsuzuka said Hokkaido Takushoku Bank's depositors will be fully protected and its fall will not have a major effect on domestic or international financial markets.
"Our key objective (when promising to support the top 20 banks) was to ensure that there would be no great shakeup in either the domestic or global financial arena," Mitsuzuka said.