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Handling of the Yamato River water quality improvement support time deposit “Yamato River Time Deposit”

This project is based on the “Yamato River time deposit”, a product marketed by Yamato Shinkin Bank and designed to improve the water quality of the Yamato River, which flows through the basin of Nara. Additional interest is paid to deposits when prescribed improvements are seen in water quality, specifically the BOD (biological oxygen demand) levels.

For three years from 2005, the water quality of the Yamato River was ranked the worst among national Class A rivers with nearly 80 percent of the reason for this due to household wastewater effluent.

The Yamato shinkin bank worked to involve local residents in efforts to improve water quality through this financial product. As a result of improvements in the river’s water quality the bank was able to pay out an additional 0.5% in interest to customers who invested in this time deposit for the years 2006, 2008 and 2009.

Apart from the above activities, the Yamato Shikin Bank has also spearheaded efforts to revitalize the local community and get citizens involved in raising water quality.