What is Mizuho Financial Group?

Mizuho, which means ‘abundant rice’ in Japanese, is the third-largest banking holding company in Japan and second-largest financial services group. Also known as MHFG, it provides a range of financial and investment services for both retail and corporate clients.

Where have you heard about Mizuho Financial Group?

If you’ve ever been to Japan you may know the name, but Mizuho is perhaps best known for getting mixed up in the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis through its US operation when it lost a whopping $7 billion.

What you need to know about Mizuho Financial Group.

Mizuho Financial Group, based in Tokyo, spans banking, wealth management, trust services and securities dealing. It is involved also in asset management, credit cards and venture capital services and has its own economic think-tank. Its banking arm has more than 500 branches across the country as well as several offices overseas. It serves more than 26 million Japanese households and 90,000 SME customers. The overall group has 60,000 employees in 38 countries and regions round the world. It describes itself as 'offering comprehensive financial and strategic services'.

Mizuho's shares are listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

Find out more about Mizuho Financial Group.

Read our definition of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group to learn more about the Japanese banking system.