Topic: Japanese life
The dark side of Japanese financeJapan Entrepreneur Report No. 17 March 2004 by Tim Clark
Speaking the polite Japanese of a seasoned businessman, the well-dressed visitor to Steven Gan's cramped Tokyo office introduced himself as an "investigation services colleague," so Mr. Gan invited him inside to get acquainted. For a few minutes, the two men made chitchat over cups of old mugicha barley tea. Suddenly, the stranger's face darkened. "What the hell do you think you're doing, trying to collect debts here in Tokyo?" he growled in the unmistakable slang of the yakuza, Japan's mafia. He pointed at Mr. Gan with fingers mimicking a gun. "Get out of this business now, or...bang!" ..