Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. President and CEO Jun Ota died Saturday due to pancreatic cancer, the company said. He was 65.
Deputy President Toru Nakashima will perform Ota's duties until a successor is selected, the Japanese financial firm said Monday.
Ota joined Sumitomo Bank, which later merged and now operates as Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp., in 1982 and pursued the digitalization of financial services beyond the framework of traditional banking operations.
In 1986, Ota was selected as a founding member of the project financing business that provides loans for large-scale projects. He was involved in many domestic and overseas projects, developing the business into the bank's main sources of revenue.
In 2009, as head of the bank's investment banking division, he worked on collaboration with securities firm Nikko Cordial Securities Inc., now SMBC Nikko Securities Inc., acquired from Citigroup Inc. of the United States.
After taking the helm of the financial group in 2019, Ota led efforts to integrate the company's "V point" loyalty program with the T-Point program of Culture Convenience Club Co., which operates the Tsutaya movie rental service and bookshop chain.
He also focused on the popularization of the Olive smartphone app that enables users to manage various financial services such as their bank accounts, credit card balances and brokerage accounts.
