Preparation of company acquisitions in top secret In September 1939, one person with knowledge of the insurance industry came to visit Toyohiko Kagawa, who was claiming start of cooperatives insurance. The person informed Kagawa that Tsuneo Kanemitsu, Colonial Affairs minister and member of the House of Lords, could put for sale his managing New Nippon Fire & Marine Insurance Co., Ltd. Kagawa had been wished insurance company keenly. The person said, “Would you buy it?” Kagawa immediately reported this story to vice president Kotaro Sengoku and managing director Michinosuke Hamada at sangyokumiaichuokai (general association of cooperatives). He also reported this story to president Yoriyasu Arima. Thinking “opportunity coming,” leaders of … Continue reading →

Failure of companies’ acquisition plan Statement of new concept toward the realization Insurance companies acquisition plan was deadlocked. On 19 February 1940, Yoriyasu Arima, president of sangyokumiaichuokai (general association of cooperatives), met with Agriculture Minister Toshio Shimada to explain post-acquisition management plan, funding method, and the reason and circumstances led to the decision to embark on the insurance management. On 14 February, Tokyo Asahi Shimbun published an editorial as follows; ”We agree with expanding activity form of sangyokumiai (cooperatives)  to insurance cooperatives. However, current legislation does not allow this. Why doesn’t the official of sangyokumiai (cooperatives) mobilize the political power of 7 million cooperatives members, in order to acquire the … Continue reading →

Kyoei Fire was born in merger Based on “Cooperatives organization” Sangyokumiai (cooperatives) reconsidered the policy towards the “next” in light of the failure of the insurance companies acquisition. As a result, the policy was decided as follows; 1) Avoiding life insurance business that had caused strong opposition, to work with leading companies limited to property insurance, 2) In order to avoid politicization, to carry a thing carefully during the closing of the Parliament , and to cancel the work during opening in the Parliament, 3) To adopt individual investment style until getting the approval of the competent authority, 4) To take the prior approval of the authorities concerned. Sangyokumiai asked … Continue reading →

Investigating Committee supposed institutionalization After the war, the Allied Forces General Headquarters (GHQ) carried out the occupation policy one after another such as dissolution of Zaibatsu (financial combine group) and antitrust. There was also   GHQ’s intention to unify regulation of the financial institutions including insurance companies. On 5 December 1945 shortly after the war, the Ministry of Finance established Financial System Investigating Committee (the primary). The committee began to consider for all financial institutions system including Bank of Japan, commercial banks, insurance companies, and securities companies. The members from scholars and each industry participated the committee. At the time, Toyohiko Kagawa, who had served as chairman of the Japan Cooperatives … Continue reading →

Defined in the provisions of nokyo law After the negotiation over one year and eight months between Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and the Allied Forces General Headquarters (GHQ), nogyokyodokumiai (agricultural cooperatives, or “nokyo”) law was promulgated in November 1947 and came into effect on 15 December. In Article 10, Paragraph (1), Item8 of nokyo law, there was the provisions of “facility regarding kyosai (mutual insurance) for agricultural disaster or other disasters.” This provision became the starting point of nokyo-kyosai (agricultural cooperatives mutual insurance) business. GHQ issued “Farmers release command” (memorandum of understanding regarding agrarian reform) on 9 December 1945. Part of the Japanese side’s answer against “Farmers release command” … Continue reading →