TOP COMMITMENT

The business integration between the Bank of Yokohama and the Higashi-Nippon Bank took place in 2016, six years before I became President and Representative Director of Concordia Financial Group. The adoption of the Latin word “concordia,” which means “harmony and cooperation,” was a sign of the two banks' determination to integrate their different corporate cultures.
Nine years after the business integration, a sense of togetherness as a group has been created. However, many shareholders, investors, and customers have commented that the current name does not convey the distinctive character of a regional financial institution group. In response to these opinions, we have decided to change the trade name to “Yokohama Financial Group” on October 1, 2025.
There are three reasons for choosing Yokohama Financial Group as our new company name. First, the Bank of Yokohama accounts for a significant portion of the Group's portfolio. Second, to take advantage of the international nature, diversity and regional brand power of the city of “Yokohama.” The third objective is to demonstrate our commitment to achieving new growth as a financial group that provides a wide range of financial services centered on banks.
Shareholders, investors, customers, and employees have welcomed the change of trade name. This change in trade name is a new step for the Company to achieve further growth and create value through the integration that has taken place to date. By choosing “Yokohama,” a strong regional brand, as our new company name, we will communicate to shareholders, investors, customers, and employees our determination to continue contributing to the home market centered on Yokohama in the Kanagawa and Tokyo areas.

We have many corporate and individual customers in our home markets of Kanagawa and Tokyo, and I believe there is plenty of room for further growth. Many of our corporate clients are owner-run businesses, and in recent years we have received an increasing number of inquiries about business succession. Listed company clients are also being asked to strengthen their capital policies, including the Tokyo Stock Exchange's tightening of listing requirements and requests for a review of policy shareholding. We can provide a wide range of solutions to address these diverse challenges, and I believe that the corporate solution business will continue to be a growth driver.
With the launch of the new NISA scheme in 2024 under the banner of promoting Japan as a “leading asset management center” by the government, individual customers are increasingly interested in investment and fund management. In response to this trend, we are working to build long-term relationships of trust with our customers by utilizing a variety of fund management products, offering detailed proposals tailored to their life stage, and actively responding to inquiries about future plans such as inheritance and gifts.
In addition, the business environment has changed significantly in recent years due to growing awareness of the need to create a sustainable environment and society. We are working to resolve social issues through sustainable finance and other means, contribute to the sustainable development of local communities, and aim for sustainable growth as a group.
As such, there is a wide range of growth opportunities in our home market. On the other hand, there are various risks in the business environment. Current concerns include changes in the global free trade regime, as typified by the U.S. tariff policy. This problem could affect many customers, including those in the automobile industry.
Another operational risk for the Company is the increasing presence of new competitors, not only megabanks and regional banks but also online banks and Fintech companies.
Furthermore, in the wake of a series of scandals at financial institutions, maintaining the trust of society has become more important than ever. As I have repeatedly stated within the Company, in order to maintain the trust of society, it is essential to foster a corporate culture with a suitable amount of pressure in day-to-day operations. To this end, it is essential to establish a thorough check system as an organization and to create an environment in which communication can be conducted openly. In particular, we believe it is important for management to take an interest in each and every employee and actively deepen communication with them.
We will continue to take on the challenge of sustainable growth and value creation by seizing growth opportunities, proactively facing risks, and responding flexibly and decisively to changes in the times.

In the previous medium-term management plan, which started in FY2022, we promoted the three basic themes of “Growth,” “Change,” and “Sustainability,” and promoted initiatives for each theme. Here, I will discuss the results of these efforts and the challenges we face in the future.
Under “Growth,” we have focused on the deepening and expansion of the solution business. As a result, revenue from the solution business increased significantly, and I believe that it has grown to become a strong driver of our performance.
As a strategic investment, in 2023 we made the KANAGAWA BANK, which is based in Kanagawa, a subsidiary. Since then, we have been working to build a sales structure that takes Kanagawa as its “face.” As a result, we are now able to provide our community-based solution business to a wider range of customers. Furthermore, in April 2025, we acquired the stocks of Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Loan & Finance (now L&F Asset Finance) from Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank and made it into a consolidated subsidiary. As a result, the Group was able to enter fields that were difficult to deal with using only banksʼ screening skills and know-how, and I believe that we were able to realize strategic use of capital that leads to enhancement of corporate value.
For “Change,” we have been investing in human capital and improving the efficiency of our stores and over-the-counter operations. Based on the Group Human Resources Strategy formulated in April 2023, we are implementing a variety of measures centered on “Human Resource Development,” “Build an Organization,” and “Create an Environment.” At the same time, we were able to achieve a certain degree of improvement in productivity and efficiency through a variety of initiatives, such as reviewing and consolidating our stores and reforming our in-store operations.
Under “Sustainability,” in addition to promoting sustainable finance and environment finance, we have also been encouraged by the growing needs of our clients to address climate change, and we have been actively working on decarbonization within the region, such as supporting the introduction of a GHG emissions visualization platform and implementing decarbonization feasibility assessments.
Another major achievement was that we were able to take the initiative in establishing a regional decarbonization platform to contribute to promoting regional decarbonization in cooperation with local governments and other organizations. In addition to contributing to the sustainability of the regional economies and local communities, we are steadily advancing our initiatives for the sophistication of sustainability management.
Looking at the overall picture, we have achieved satisfactory results in the areas of Growth and Sustainability. On the other hand, while we have made progress in the area of Change, I feel that our human resources development is still insufficient. We have implemented various measures, however, it is difficult to achieve short-term results in human resource development and we need to work to foster a corporate culture and environment from a long-term perspective. We are still in the middle of building a human resources portfolio and increasing the number of sales personnel to expand earnings, and outside directors are also calling for us to further promote the improvement of productivity. These results and areas for improvement were fully considered and reflected in the new medium-term management plan that began in FY2025.

Aiming for the sustainable growth and enhancement of corporate value for the entire Group, we are working on the deepening and expansion of the solution business. In an increasingly competitive market environment, it is more important than ever for each employee to be aware of their role and provide quality solutions.
Since I became president, I have been keenly aware that the most important factor in advancing the solution business is the relationship of trust with our customers. Based on this awareness, the new medium-term management plan has adopted the term “relationship banking” as a key element of its solution business. Although this concept has been used in the past, I believe that placing the highest priority on the relationship of trust with our customers is indispensable for the sustainable growth of our Company, even in todayʼs rapidly changing world. By providing optimal solutions based on a relationship of trust with our customers, we aim to become the “solution company of choice.”
I also expect making L&F Asset Finance a consolidated subsidiary to create synergies. As a specialty finance company with its core businesses in housing loans, apartment loans and mortgage finance, the company will be able to reach needs that we have not been able to adequately address. I expect the acquisition of new customers and expansion of transactions with existing customers to greatly improve the financial functions of the Group as a whole.
Such utilization of capital will not only expand the scope of our businesses but also contribute to the enhancement of corporate value by acquiring new revenue sources and diversifying our portfolio of businesses as a group. I also believe that this management strategy is directly linked to the stabilization of our management base and the sustainable growth of our earnings. We will continue to actively pursue strategic investment opportunities to become the financial group of choice.

We are one of the top performers among regional banking groups in terms of funds and market capitalization. I feel that staying at the top of these quantitative indicators raises employee awareness and self-confidence, as well as improves the quality of human resources. However, in order to truly become a “top regional bank,” it is essential that we aim to be at the top not only in terms of management indicators but also in terms of the quality of our human resources. Therefore, I also consider improving employee engagement to be a very important theme. Creating an environment with high engagement, investing in human capital and improving productivity are essential so that everyone can work with pride as an employee of a top bank.
Our sales strategies are supported by our Human Resource Strategy. In response to the increasing mobility of human resources, we are working to clarify the image of human resources we seek, strengthen recruitment and training, systematize know-how, and create an efficient training framework. In order for the Group as a whole to achieve its goals, the cultivation of managers is also an important point.
Also, increased engagement cannot be achieved through investment in human capital alone. In particular, to improve productivity, it is necessary to ensure that managers have time to actively communicate with team members and to build relationships with customers. We have heard from employees in the branches that they do not have enough time. As we strengthen our solution business, we are faced with the challenge of how to create the time to build relationships with customers. For example, employees who used to spend only 15 minutes talking to customers can now spend 30 minutes or one hour talking to them. By doing so, they can deepen customerʼs trust, which leads to improving employeesʼ own confidence and motivation.
For improving productivity, we established the “Productivity Improvement Office” and started the productivity improvement project. We are conducting a fundamental review of our business processes based on the keywords “stopping,” “reducing,” and “changing.” In the future, management will be responsible for raising awareness and actively promoting the reduction and review of unnecessary operations. This will allow us to focus our resources on the areas where our employees need to excel.
As we reported in the Integrated Report last year, we are promoting the development of an organization in which diverse human resources work together and make the most of their opinions and ideas in order to respond to the increasingly complex issues faced by our customers. We believe that diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives are essential for each and every employee to demonstrate their individuality and abilities and create new value from a variety of values.
In the current fiscal year, we will also focus on “working method reform,” which enables employees to concentrate on value-creating work, with management assessing and “stopping” unnecessary work. We also aim to create a workplace that flexibly responds to various needs and desires, such as wanting to work in a balanced way and wanting to try new ways of working, and enables a variety of ways of working with an emphasis on a choice system.
I am convinced that innovation will be born when employees with diverse values recognize each other and work together. Improving the engagement of each and every employee is essential for our Company to continue to grow and remain a strong organization. I will continue to listen to the voices of employees and strive to create an attractive organization where everyone can play an active role.

As “Our Ideal State 10 Years From Now,” we aim to be a comprehensive financial group with advanced functions that can compete with other companies. To achieve this, it is essential to strengthen the governance structure of the entire Group.
As a concrete measure, in June 2025 we made the transition to a Company with an Audit and Supervisory Committee. This shift is intended to clarify the roles of execution, supervision, and audit, and to shift to a system in which the Financial Group (FG), as a holding company, assumes the management and supervision functions and subsidiaries such as the banks assume the execution functions. Although the functions of the FG and the Bank of Yokohama overlap in some areas at present, the FG will step by step strengthen its roles in managing and supervising the execution of business throughout the Group. Moreover, the outside director ratio has increased from 37% to 55%, increasing the objectivity and diversity of decision making and strengthening the effectiveness of governance.
In addition to strengthening governance, from the perspective of sustainable growth of the Company and sustainable development of local communities, we will promote the realization of a climate-resilient decarbonized society with “environmental conservation and protection” as one of our materiality. Since the adoption of the Paris Agreement, countries and regions around the world have been making progress in their efforts to achieve the 1.5°C target. We are working to visualize GHG emissions, set reduction targets, and propose financing for the transition, while engaging in dialogue with our customers. For the investment and loan portfolio as a whole, we have set an interim target of “2050 net zero (net zero emissions of greenhouse gases)” and are monitoring the progress.
Also, as a regional financial institution, we recognize that contributing to regional development by resolving regional issues is an important mission. In addition to supporting decarbonization, renewable energy, and biodiversity conservation, I believe that we should also support the inheritance of history and culture and the creation of local innovation as part of sustainability.
Recognizing that respect for human rights is an important corporate responsibility, we have established the Group Human Rights Policy and are working to create a society in which discrimination and harassment are not tolerated and human rights are protected. As a first step, we will continue our efforts to raise awareness of human rights. In addition to our executives and employees, we will also work to promote understanding of our Group Human Rights Policy among stakeholders as well. At the same time, we will continue to enhance our human rights due diligence system by taking measures to address human rights issues, such as establishing a remedy hotline and strengthening monitoring.