Daishi Bank Ltd. and Hokuetsu Bank Ltd. agreed to merge to survive Japan's negative interest rate environment amid a shrinking population.

The two Japanese regional banks said they planned to set up a joint holding company by April 2, 2018.

The proposed holding company, Daishi Hokuetsu Financial Group, will list its shares on the Tokyo Stock Exchange on April 2, 2018. Daishi Bank and Hokuetsu Bank will delist their shares on March 28, 2018.