Tokyo-based banking and financial services company Mizuho Financial Group announced today the appointment of Yasuhiko Ushikubo for the newly created position of Chief Sustainability Officer. The appointment forms part of a series of structural moves by the company to integrate sustainability initiatives into its business strategy.

In his new role, Ushikubo will responsible for the planning and promotion of sustainability initiatives for the entire Mizuho group. Ushikubo is currently Head of Research & Consulting Unit at Mizuho and at Mizuho Bank, and will add the CSO role to his responsibilities in September, reporting to the group CEO.

In addition to the new appointment, the company announced the establishment of two cross-entity departments as of September, including the Sustainable Business Promotion Department, which will focus on planning with regard to sustainable business, and the Sustainability Planning Department, which will concentrate on setting the group’s sustainability policy. The two departments will report to Ushikubo.

In a statement announcing the appointment, Mizuho said:

“The environment surrounding sustainability is changing at a rapid pace, and the challenges faced by Mizuho and our customers are becoming ever more complex and diverse. We believe that in order to effectively address this situation, we need to leverage our technical and industrial knowledge, organically linking various centers of excellence within the Mizuho group, and respond to the changing environment in a flexible and prompt manner.”