In response to the frequent M&A, which refers to company takeovers, that occurred nationwide, including the long-established wedding venue "Kashima Garden Villa" in Shirakawa City (for details, refer to our magazine's May and June issues), the government has begun to take action.
In May, the Asahi Shimbun featured a malicious M&A involving Akihito Hirota, Naoshi Katayama, and Takushi Kanda from Meisei Tax Corporation (the article did not mention their full names, only initials). When Koichi Arakawa, the representative of the 'Victims' Association' organized by the affected companies, provided information about Hirota and others' methods to the M&A support agency registration office of the Small and Medium Enterprise Agency, the response received was, 'We would like to consider appropriate measures if actions contrary to the
The information provided by Mr. Arakawa is as follows.
After acquiring the company, Hirota and others have moved cash deposits outside the company and embezzled them.
After acquiring the company, they have not assumed the liabilities of the financial institution and have left them unattended.
As a result, the acquired company falls into insolvency, leading to bankruptcy.
More than 30 companies across the country have been acquired using that method.
When I sent the materials explaining a structure that can be called "fraud" rather than M&A, I received the following response from the office.
The "M&A Support Organization Registration System is a system for registering those who are required to comply with the 'Small and Medium-sized Enterprise M&A Guidelines', and if any actions contrary to the guidelines are observed, we would like to consider appropriate responses. For example, the guidelines require M&A intermediaries to "disclose and clarify information regarding matters where there is a conflict of interest between the parties in a timely manner" when they recognize such conflicts. If there are individuals listed in the (affected companies) list who have been involved in inappropriate mediation and wish to have a response in accordance with the guidelines, we would like to ask them to provide information to our office.
It is clear that there are deficiencies in M&A for small and medium-sized enterprises, given that the number of affected companies has exceeded 30. However, the guidelines indicate the appropriate way to proceed with M&A, and there are no provisions to punish incident handlers like Hirota. In fact, Arakawa was told by the secretariat, "(We will accept information, but) this is not for the purpose of dispute resolution or advice, so please consult with the police or lawyers regarding individual cases," and how much the secretariat can eliminate malicious M&A with a response in accordance with the "guidelines" is a challenge for the future. However, it is undeniable that progress has been made.
Emails have also been received from readers of this magazine reporting the following damages (the content has been partially rewritten for readability).
In 2022, there was a job recruitment at a company called General Business Machine in Tokyo, and several people, including myself, were hired. I felt discomfort early after joining the company, and we united and collectively resigned, so we avoided delayed and unpaid salaries, but it is unfortunate that an unnecessary work history has increased by one. I have no acquaintance with Mr. Hirota. If he were the president, there should have been a greeting or introduction upon joining, but it was the first time I resigned without knowing the president's face. During my time there, I experienced mental distress due to shouting and power harassment. I believe many lives have been disrupted by Mr. Hirota, and I am no exception.
General Business Machine Co., Ltd. (Osaka City, capital of 20 million yen) is engaged in the printing, manufacturing, and sales of various cards such as magnetic recording cards. Since 2022, Mr. Hirota has been the president, and the aforementioned Mr. Katayama has been appointed as a director. The company name General Business Machine is also listed in the victim company list of the "Victims' Association."
If we do not grasp the full extent of the damage, take necessary measures, and punish Mr. Hirota and others, similar incidents surrounding M&A may not disappear.
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In response to the frequent M&A, which refers to company takeovers, that occurred nationwide, including the long-established wedding venue "Kashima Garden Villa" in Shirakawa City (for details, refer to our magazine's May and June issues), the government has begun to take action.
In May, the Asahi Shimbun featured a malicious M&A involving Akihito Hirota, Naoshi Katayama, and Takushi Kanda from Meisei Tax Corporation (the article did not mention their full names, only initials). When Koichi Arakawa, the representative of the "Victims' Association" organized by the affected companies, provided information about Hirota and others' methods to the M&A support agency registration office of the Small and Medium Enterprise Agency, the response received was, "We would like to consider appropriate measures if actions contrary to the 'Small and Medium Enterprise M&A Guidelines' were being conducted."
The information provided by Mr. Arakawa is as follows.
After acquiring the company, Hirota and others are moving cash deposits outside the company and embezzling them.
After acquiring the company, they have not assumed the liabilities of the financial institution and have left them unattended.
As a result, the acquired company falls into insolvency, leading to bankruptcy.
More than 30 companies across the country have been acquired using that method.
When I sent the materials explaining a structure that can be called "fraud" rather than M&A, I received the following response from the office.
The "M&A Support Organization Registration System is a system that registers those who are required to comply with the 'Small and Medium-sized M&A Guidelines', and if any actions contrary to the guidelines are observed, we would like to consider appropriate responses. For example, the guidelines require M&A intermediaries to "disclose and clarify information regarding matters where there is a conflict of interest between the parties in a timely manner when such matters are recognized." If there are individuals listed in the (affected companies) list who are believed to have been involved in inappropriate mediation, and if there are those who wish for a response in accordance with the guidelines, we would like you to provide information to our office.
It is clear that there are deficiencies in M&A for small and medium-sized enterprises, given that the number of affected companies has exceeded 30. However, the guidelines indicate the appropriate way to proceed with M&A, and there are no provisions to punish incident handlers like Hirota. In fact, Arakawa was told by the secretariat, "(We will accept information, but) this is not intended for dispute resolution or advice, so please consult the police or lawyers regarding individual cases," and how much the secretariat's "response in accordance with the guidelines" can eliminate malicious M&A will be a future challenge. However, it is undeniable that progress has been made.
Emails have also been received from readers of this magazine reporting the following damages (the content has been partially rewritten for readability).
《About Mr. Hirota, in 2022, there was a job recruitment at a company called General Business Machine in Tokyo, and several people, including myself, were hired. I felt discomfort early after joining the company, and we united and collectively resigned, so we avoided delayed and unpaid salaries, but it is unfortunate that an unnecessary work history has increased by one. I have no acquaintance with Mr. Hirota. If he were the president, there should have been greetings or introductions upon joining, but it was the first time I resigned without knowing the president's face. During my employment, I experienced mental distress due to shouting and power harassment. I believe many people's lives have been disrupted by Mr. Hirota, and I am the same.》
General Business Machine Co., Ltd. (Osaka City, capital of 20 million yen) is engaged in the printing, manufacturing, and sales of various cards such as magnetic recording cards. Since 2022, Mr. Hirota has been the president, and Mr. Maede and Mr. Katayama have been appointed as directors. The company name General Business Machine is also listed in the victim company list of the "Victims' Association."
If we do not grasp the full extent of the damage, take necessary measures, and punish Mr. Hirota and others, similar incidents surrounding M&A may not disappear.