Mizuho Financial Group Inc. announced that it has appointed Senior Executive Officer Masahiro Kihara as president, with the beleaguered financial institution looking to restore public trust under new leadership after repeated system failures severely impacted operations at its key banking unit. The 56-year-old will replace Tatsufumi Sakai, 62, effective on Feb. 1. Kihara is the older brother of Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Seiji Kihara.

Mizuho Financial also tapped Deputy President Seiji Imai, 59, as its new chairman, effective on April 1. He takes over the post from Yasuhiro Sato, 69. The new management team will be formed as Mizuho looks to overhaul its rigid corporate culture, a major factor that is believed to have led to the 10 system failures of varying degrees it experienced over less than a year. Mizuho Financial said in November Mizuho Bank's Deputy President Masahiko Kato, 56, will replace Koji Fujiwara, 60, as president at the bank, effective on April 1, 2022.