Japan's central bank governor provided parliament with details of his personal finances today as a new public opinion poll showed many Japanese want him to quit over an investment scandal.
Toshihiko Fukui, governor of the Bank of Japan (BOJ), has been under fire since revealing this month he had invested 10 million yen (now about $86,000) in a fund run by a man who has since been indicted for insider dealing.
Among the details provided in the report for parliament was the disclosure that Mr Fukui's wife held shares in a company linked to the indicted fund manager, Yoshiaki Murakami.
Financial markets took that as a sign of more trouble for the central bank governor, putting pressure on the yen. Mr Fukui is considered a talented central banker, and analysts say his departure would be negative for the yen.
Japan's four opposition parties have called on Mr Fukui to quit, and a poll in the Asahi newspaper showed nearly 70 per cent of respondents believe he should resign.
Mr Fukui made his original investment in 1999, but his judgment has been questioned because he kept the money in the fund after becoming head of the central bank in 2003.
The investment did not appear to violate BOJ rules, government and BOJ officials have said.
Mr Fukui's report showed his wife held shares in Hanshin Electric Railway, in which the controversial fund was the largest shareholder. She had bought 2,000 shares of the railway company in August 2000, a ruling party lawmaker said.
The affair threatens to be an embarrassment for Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, who appointed Fukui to his role and who has supported him since the fund controversy emerged.
The controversy comes at a delicate time as the BOJ is widely thought to be on the brink of raising interest rates for the first time in six years.
Public anger has been stoked by the high returns Mr Fukui earned as he more than doubled his money in the scandal-tainted fund.
Mr Fukui apologised to parliamentary panels examining the issue last week, but he has said that he does not plan to quit and that the furore would not affect BOJ monetary policy decisions.