Takafumi Sato, the former Commissioner of Japan's Financial Services Agency, has been named senior advisor to the chairman and chief executive officer of Promontory Financial Group, a global consulting firm for financial services companies.

Mr Sato brings vast experience into Promontory, particularly in the areas of financial regulation and supervision. Prior to serving as FSA Commissioner, he was director general of the agency's Supervisory Bureau for three years and director general of the Inspection Bureau before that.

"Our clients in the US, Europe, and Asia will benefit from [Mr Sato's] deep understanding of regulatory, compliance and risk management matters," said Eugene A Ludwig, the founder, chairman and CEO of Promontory, in a statement.

Promontory specialises in helping clients meet regulatory requirements, strengthen credit and risk controls, analyse liquidity needs, design and implement restructuring mechanisms, and acquire new bank charters, among others. It has operations in the US, London, Milan, Paris, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo, and Toronto.