Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui certainly offers new hires a path to branches in the US and Britain, with 40% of banking revenue already coming from abroad

Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. has developed a program for selected new employees from April 2025 that ensures that they are assigned to foreign branches in their second year of employment.

By ensuring that new employees know where to go, the bank hopes to attract talented graduates with good English skills. The bank says it is the first in Japan to promise graduates an overseas post if they are hired.

The new hires will work in New York or London and the program will be limited to a handful of people, according to the bank. To obtain a work visa, employees must work in Japan for at least one year. However, once they get their visa, they will be assigned to either city.

Students wishing to apply for the program must have strong English skills, such as a score of at least 105 on TOEFL, or the Test of English as a Foreign Language.

Employees in the program are expected to gain the knowledge and experience needed for financial companies in the United States and Europe at an early age, through negotiations with international companies and local municipalities abroad. In the future, the bank hopes to develop talent who can formulate and implement foreign business strategies.

As low interest rates have persisted in Japan for years, major domestic banks have expanded their operations abroad with higher interest rates. Nearly 40% of Sumitomo Mitsui Banking’s revenue comes from overseas operations.

In the past, the bank focused on the overseas activities of Japanese companies. Now the company is also trying to do more business with local companies abroad.

And as other major Japanese banks look to expand their overseas operations, they too are stepping up efforts to bring in international talent.

MUFG Bank and Mizuho Bank have their own special recruitment quotas for students who want to work abroad in the future, but they do not guarantee specific placements.