Message from the President

　Thank you very much for your continued patronage of the Bank of Iwate.

　In Iwate Prefecture, our main base of operations, although we need to be alert to the impact of overseas economic trends, rising consumer prices, supply constraints and other factors, now that COVID-19 has been downgraded to a Class 5 infectious disease, economic activities are moving more and more toward normality. The recovery of tourism has been particularly striking, and with Morioka being featured in the New York Times' list of "52 Places to Go in 2023," inbound tourism has fully recovered, and many tourists are visiting the Bank of Iwate Red Brick Building. With personal consumption and production activities also on the road to recovery, the overall positive trend is continuing, and we can expect to see steady growth.

　Under these circumstances, the Bank has formulated its new long-term vision, which looks toward the next 10 years, and our new medium-term management plan. Our long-term vision is to be "a company of value co-creation that will solve our customers' issues and drive the sustainable growth of the local community." It is instilled with our desire to be an organization that creates new value in the region by leveraging Iwate's unique strengths, such as renewable energy, agriculture, forestry and fisheries, and tourism, and drawing out its potential, while coordinating with regional business operators and local governments.

　To realize our long-term vision, in our new medium-term management plan, the three years until March 2026 will be a period in which we will use our own capital to expand the financial services area and take on the challenge of new business areas. In addition, through business portfolio reforms, we will create a growth trajectory toward achieving consolidated net income of 10 billion yen in the year of our centennial in ten years' time. We will take maximum advantage of all manner of assets, including the information assets and sales foundations built into the Bank of Iwate Group, in the hope of creating a business model that will realize the creation of new value that only our Group is capable of.

　Our executives and employees will be working together to continue contributing to the advancement of the region, so we truly hope that we can count on your continued patronage.

Toru Iwayama
President