Japanese Banks Rush to Train Staff on Higher Rates After Decades of Deflation
• Japanese banks are giving crash courses to younger staff to help clients navigate higher interest rates, as many employees have no experience with rising rates after decades of deflation • Banks like MUFG and Resona have held dozens of study sessions and seminars to prepare frontline bankers for advising clients amid changing rate environments • Investment banks like Daiwa are creating new departments dedicated to capitalizing on expected trading activity from higher rates • Some banks are seeing pension fund clients adjust portfolios, shifting to yen-denominated bonds from popular currency-hedged foreign bonds • Overbanking and skepticism that lending rates can rise much may delay banks fully capitalizing on rate hikes, as nearly no bankers have seen rates above 0.5%