The business year of a bank is from April 1 to March 31 of the following year.

Notwithstanding the provisions of Article 445, paragraph (4) (Amount of Stated Capital and Amount of Reserves) of the Companies Act, if a bank pays the dividend of surplus, it must allocate an amount arrived at when the amount of surplus to be reduced as a result of the payment of those dividends of surplus is multiplied by one-fifth as the capital reserves or retained earnings reserves, pursuant to the provisions of Cabinet Office Order.

①Each business year, a bank must prepare an interim business report for the interim period of the business year (meaning the period from April 1 to September 30 of the business year; the same applies hereinafter) that is a part of the relevant business year which states the status of business and property, and a business report for the entire business year, and submit those reports to the Prime Minister.

②If a bank has a subsidiary company, etc., each business year, in addition to the reports referred to in the preceding paragraph, the bank must prepare an interim business report for the interim period of the business year that is a part of the relevant business year which states the status of business and property of that bank and its subsidiary companies, etc. on a consolidated basis, and a business report for the entire business year which states the status of business and property on a consolidated basis, and submit those reports to the Prime Minister.

③The particulars to be stated in the reports referred to in the preceding two paragraphs, the due dates for submission, and other necessary particulars concerning those reports is specified by Cabinet Office Order.

①Each business year, a bank must prepare a balance sheet and a profit and loss statement for the interim period of the business year that is a part of the relevant business year (hereinafter referred to as an "interim balance sheet, etc." in this Article) and a balance sheet and a profit and loss statement for the entire business year (hereinafter referred to as a "balance sheet, etc." in this Article), pursuant to the provisions of Cabinet Office Order.

②If a bank has a subsidiary company, etc., each business year, in addition to an interim balance sheet, etc. and a balance sheet, etc., the bank must prepare a balance sheet and a profit and loss statement for the interim period of the business year that is a part of the relevant business year in which entries for the bank and its subsidiary companies, etc. are made on a consolidated basis (hereinafter referred to as an "interim consolidated balance sheet, etc." in this Article), and prepare a balance sheet and a profit and loss statement for the entire business year in which it entries for the bank and its subsidiary companies, etc. are made on a consolidated basis (hereinafter referred to as a "consolidated balance sheet, etc." in this Article), pursuant to the provisions of Cabinet Office Order.

③An interim balance sheet, etc., a balance sheet, etc., an interim consolidated balance sheet, etc., or a consolidated balance sheet, etc. may be prepared as an electronic or magnetic record (meaning a record prepared in an electronic form, magnetic form, or any other form that cannot be perceived by the human senses, which is specified by Cabinet Office Order as being used for information processing by computers; the same applies hereinafter).

④Pursuant to the provisions of Cabinet Office Order, a bank must issue public notice of its interim balance sheet, etc. and its interim consolidated balance sheet, etc. within three months after the end of the relevant interim period of the business year, and of its balance sheet, etc. and its consolidated balance sheet, etc. within three months after the end of the relevant business year; provided, however, that if it is not possible for a bank to issue public notice of these documents within that three-month period due to compelling reasons, it may postpone the issuance of the public notice, with the approval of the Prime Minister.

⑤Notwithstanding the provisions of the preceding paragraph, it is sufficient for a bank that uses the means of public notice (meaning a means of public notices prescribed in Article 2, item (xxxiii) (Definitions) of the Companies Act; the same applies hereinafter) set forth in Article 57, item (i), to issue public notice of the overview of the interim balance sheet, etc.; the balance sheet, etc.; the interim consolidated balance sheet, etc.; and the consolidated balance sheet, etc. pursuant to the provisions of Cabinet Office Order. In such a case, the provisions of the proviso to the preceding paragraph apply mutatis mutandis.

⑥Pursuant to the provisions of Cabinet Office Order, a bank that is prescribed in the preceding paragraph may take a measure that uses electronic or magnetic means (meaning a means of using an electronic data processing system or using other information and communications technology that is specified by Cabinet Office Order; the same applies hereinafter) to make the information contained in the interim balance sheet, etc. and the interim consolidated balance sheet, etc. available to many and unspecified persons within three months after the end of the relevant interim period of the business year and the information contained in the balance sheet, etc. and the consolidated balance sheet, etc. available to many and unspecified persons within three months after the end of the relevant business year, for a continuous period of five years. In such cases, the bank is deemed to have issued the public notice under the provisions of paragraph (4).

⑦The provisions of the preceding paragraphs do not apply to a bank that must submit an annual securities report to the Prime Minister pursuant to the provisions of Article 24, paragraph (1) (Submission of Annual Securities Reports) of the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act.

①Each business year, a bank must prepare explanatory documents for the interim period of the business year that is a part of the relevant business year which states the particulars specified by Cabinet Office Order as pertinent to the status of its business and property, prepare explanatory documents for the entire business year which states those particulars, keep those documents at its business offices (other than unmanned business offices and other offices specified by Cabinet Office Order; the same applies in the following paragraph and paragraph (4)), and make them available for public inspection. The same applies to the documents prepared pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (1) of the preceding Article.

②If a bank has a subsidiary company, etc., each business year, the bank must prepare explanatory documents for the interim period of the business year that is a part of the relevant business year which states the particulars specified by Cabinet Office Order as pertinent to the status of business and property of the bank and its subsidiary companies, etc., on a consolidated basis, prepare explanatory documents for the entire business year which states those particulars on a consolidated basis, keep those documents at its business offices together with the documents prepared pursuant to the provisions of the first sentence of the preceding paragraph, and make them available for public inspection. The same applies to the documents prepared pursuant to the provisions of paragraphs (1) and (2) of the preceding Article.

③The explanatory documents for the interim period of the business year and those for the entire business year which are prescribed in the first sentence of paragraph (1) or the first sentence of the preceding paragraph may be prepared as electronic or magnetic records.

④If the explanatory documents for the interim period of the business year and those for the entire business year which are prescribed in the first sentence of paragraph (1) or the documents provided for in the second sentence of that paragraph are prepared as electronic or magnetic records, the bank may take a measure that is specified by Cabinet Office Order as a measure that uses electronic or magnetic means to make the information recorded in an electronic or magnetic record available to many and unspecified persons, at its business offices. In such a case, the bank is deemed to have kept the explanatory documents for the interim period of the business year and those for the entire business year which are provided for in the first sentence of paragraph (1) or the documents provided for in the second sentence of that paragraph and made them available for public inspection, pursuant to the provisions of that paragraph.

⑤The provisions of the preceding paragraph apply mutatis mutandis to the explanatory documents for the interim period of the business year and those for the entire business year that are prescribed in the first sentence of paragraph (2) and to the documents prescribed in the second sentence of that paragraph.

⑥Beyond what is provided for in the provisions of the preceding paragraphs, Cabinet Order prescribes the necessary particulars for the application of those provisions, such as the period of time during which the documents referred to in paragraph (1) or (2) are made available for public inspection.

⑦A bank must endeavor to disclose information that is to serve as a reference for the depositors or other customers to learn the status of business and property of the bank and its subsidiary companies, etc., in addition to the particulars prescribed in the preceding paragraphs.

The particulars to be stated or recorded in the business reports and annexed detailed statements which a bank prepares pursuant to the provisions of Article 435, paragraph (2) (Preparation and Retention of Financial Statements) of the Companies Act, are specified by Cabinet Office Order.

The provisions of Article 433 (Request to Inspect Account Books) of the Companies Act do not apply to the accounting books of a bank or materials related to them.