Nine Megabanks and Police Launch Rapid-Freeze Framework Against Fraud MoneyA · FULL TRANSLATION
- Mizuho, MUFG, SMBC and six other banks signed an agreement with the National Police Agency
- From June 1, banks respond rapidly to police inquiries on stolen fund flows
- The goal is freezing fraud proceeds before they vanish through mule account networks
What fraud rings fear most is speed, and Japan's new framework is built for exactly that. Nine banks including Mizuho, MUFG and SMBC signed an agreement with the National Police Agency, operational June 1, to trace, freeze and recover special-fraud proceeds by answering police inquiries on fund flows in near real time - before money hops through mule account networks and gets cashed out. Covering the banks that dominate national retail payments, including Japan Post Bank and major net banks, the framework pre-blocks most escape routes. For residents it is a real safety upgrade; for observers, it is a template for real-time public-private data cooperation in a strict privacy regime. Next milestones: extension to regional banks and payment apps, and the actual recovery-rate numbers.
The FSA announced that nine major banks - Mizuho, MUFG, SMBC, Resona, Seven Bank, Rakuten Bank, Aeon Bank, SBI Shinsei and Japan Post Bank - have signed an agreement with the National Police Agency establishing a public-private framework for tracing, freezing and recovering funds stolen through special fraud schemes, operational from June 1, 2026. Recognizing that stolen funds are rapidly moved across accounts by criminal groups, participating banks will respond swiftly to police inquiries about fund destinations, enabling freezes before money is dispersed or withdrawn.