According to sources, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group will begin to divest themselves of their strategic stake in Toyota Motor Corporation worth 13.2 trillion Japanese yen ($85 billion), which is the latest clear indication that large Japanese companies are seriously considering dismantling their massive cross-shareholding networks. These banks are expected to sell Toyota stocks in stages while using Toyota's plan to buy back its own stocks. The world's largest auto manufacturer announced a 1 trillion yen ($9.2 billion) buyback plan on May 8, which accounted for about 3% of its stocks, much larger than its previous buyback scale. These sources say that this adjustment will minimize the impact of its stock price. Although the government has been pushing Japanese companies to unravel their cross-shareholdings, progress has been slow among large banks and enterprises. Cross-shareholding has been formed over decades by Japanese companies to strengthen business relationships. Given the scale and significance of this transaction, it could trigger a more widespread wave of relaxing stock ownership relationships in Japan.