A major bank without a merger plan could be placed under the "bridge bank" scheme if it fails, Finance Minister Kiichi Miyazawa said Tuesday during the Diet's extraordinary session.
Miyazawa brought up the hypothetical situation as he stood before the House of Representatives Plenary Sitting. The Diet has begun debate on a set of six bills aimed at reviving Japan's crippled financial system.
It is the first time the government and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party have explained the contents of each bill before the Diet. If the financial system bills are passed next month, it will be considered a watershed for the nation's banking crisis and its potential to trigger global financial disaster.