ABSTRACT
Foreign banks have a long but limited history in Japan. Before the Second World War, a few British and Dutch banks, as well as a French colonial bank, had pre-war outposts. The Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers (SCAP) allowed a dozen foreign banks into the country, including four from the United States: Citibank, Bank of America, Chase, and American Express. The influx of banks represented an exception to SCAP’s usual approach toward foreign investment. Foreign, particularly US, banks became the source of credit that allowed Japanese companies to finance trade. Foreign banks, however, never received complete freedom to operate in the domestic economy. Occupation officials carefully kept the banks from competing directly with Japanese banks. Foreign branches had little involvement in Japan’s domestic economy, although Citibank’s office in Osaka did an extensive business with local textile companies. Citibank began taking steps to regain entry to the country almost contemporaneously with the beginning of the occupation.
