Despite widespread public support for the Tokyo Metropolitan Government's plan to levy a new tax on major banks, other local governments have been slow to follow suit -- because they realize the capital's situation is unique.
The metro ordinance, which will levy a tax of up to 3 percent on banks with assets totaling 5 trillion yen or more from April, was put forward by the metropolis as an effective means of securing a stable source of tax revenue for the cash-strapped local government.
But while the assembly defied the protests of the central government and the banking industry in voting almost unanimously for the new bank tax Thursday, the same option may not be as attractive for other prefectures.