Japan’s parliament Friday passed a bill authorizing the privatization of Japan Post, with its $3.1 trillion in assets. The new law, which goes into effect in 2007, creates four separate companies to handle mail delivery, banking, insurance, and management of the nationwide post office network. Japan is the latest nation to privatize or de-monopolize their post office. Other recent nations include: Germany, France, Denmark, and New Zealand. Read more about the plan, the history, and potential reform in the US in Reason’s Annual Privatization Report.