Mizuho Bank charged $6.75b negative interest rate by BOJ

This is the first time in 7 months that a megabank was charged.

Japan’s Mizuho bank was charged negative interest rates on its $6.75b (JPY902.8b) reserves, reports Reuters according to data from the Bank of Japan.

This is the first time in seven months that negative rates were charged on reserves of any of the country’s megabanks.

A spokesperson for Mizuho Bank said the bank held 902.8 billion yen in BOJ reserves with negative rates.

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BOJ’s yield curve control imposes a 0.1% interest rate on a portion of excess reserves financial institutions park with the central bank.

Japan’s megabanks have mostly avoided paying the interest by shifting money out of BOJ reserves.

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