TOKYO -- Japan's Financial Services Agency has launched an emergency inspection into Suruga Bank over investment irregularities involving women-only shared houses, people familiar with the matter said Friday.
Suruga Bank, a regional bank based in Numazu, Shizuoka Prefecture, is the biggest lender for a chain of shared houses called Kabocha no Basha (pumpkin carriage). Some executives are alleged to have been involved in wrongdoing, including altering documents to smooth screening of loan applications.
