Chiba Bank and Musashino Bank announced that they have agreed to form a comprehensive capital and business partnership. Chiba Bank and Musashino Bank reported that they will remain independent under the partnership. The banks reported that they will pursue a new model for cooperation between regional banks that will not involve mergers.

The move comes as banks are increasingly opting to merge operations to survive competition. Under their alliance, the two banks will aim to utilize their branch networks and customer bases to enhance services and bolster earnings. They will also aim to cut costs by unifying some back-office functions, while jointly developing information technology systems and exchanging personnel.