The president of Japan's UFJ Holdings Inc has flatly ruled out a potential change in its merger partner to Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc (SMFG), according to media reports Sunday.
"We have no intention at all" to negotiate with SMFG, said Ryosuke Tamakoshi, whose bank announced a merger plan with Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group Inc (MTFG) last month, according to the Nihon Keizai Shimbun.
"There is no change. We aim to combine the entire UFJ group with that of MTFG," Tamakoshi said in an interview with the business daily.
"We may respond to the request as a matter of courtesy, but we cannot think of any other options" than a merger plan with MTFG, he added.
Talks between UFJ Holdings and MTFG, Japan's second-largest but most profitable bank, have hit a snag with a Tokyo court issuing an injunction barring UFJ from conducting talks involving the sale of its trust banking unit.