Japanese regulators seek stricter rules on safe deposit boxes

The Financial Services Agency on Thursday proposed revising its guidelines for oversight of banks to put their safe deposit boxes under stricter control.

The move follows a recent series of safe deposit box thefts involving bank employees, including at MUFG Bank.

The proposals include removing cash and other items that have a high risk of being used for money laundering from a list of assets that can be kept in safe deposit boxes.

The agency’s guidelines for bank oversight currently do not include specific rules regarding safe deposit boxes.

The FSA’s proposals call on banks to take steps to prevent misconduct involving safe deposit boxes, including theft and money laundering.

The agency also seeks to ask banks to disclose thefts of customer assets from safe deposit boxes unless the disclosure obstructs investigations or customers do not want the cases to be disclosed.