Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. announced Friday it had given up its controversial attempt to merge with UFJ Holdings Inc., giving in to rival Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group Inc.
The withdrawal of the nation's third-ranked banking group put a lid on the first-ever hostile takeover bid in Japan's financial industry.
In a statement released Friday, SMFG said it decided to withdraw the bid because recent stock prices and views from investors suggested the market generally supports the MTFG-UFJ merger.