Tokyo, 1991: Starting as a bank clerk

Chapter 128 Factional Framework [Seventh Update, Seeking Monthly Tickets]

After the mid-level management meeting ended, the people in the meeting room gradually left.

After most of the people in the meeting room had left, Masakazu Yamada slowly closed the folder in front of him, leaned back in his chair, and let out a long sigh.

He didn't get up immediately, but just stared at the few pages of meeting minutes on the table, as if he was thinking about something.

Chihaya Yuri didn't leave either.

Kiryu Yaya glanced at the two of them, and wisely refrained from urging them, simply sitting there quietly.

The meeting room door was pushed open and then closed.

The footsteps in the corridor gradually faded away.

Finally, Masakazu Yamada spoke.

"Chihaya."

"Yes."

"You shouldn't have slammed your hand on the table just now."

Chihaya Yuri nodded: "I know."

"You knew it, yet you still filmed it?"

"I can't stand it."

Masakazu Yamada looked at her, remained silent for a few seconds, and then suddenly laughed.

"Indeed. Miki's words were indeed hard to ignore."

He paused, his tone turning serious.

"But have you ever wondered why Shinji Miki would suddenly jump out like this? He has no grudge against the Financing Review Department, nor does he have any personal animosity towards Kiryu. What he said today, rather than being his own opinion, is more like—"

"It's more like starting a war for someone else."

Chihaya Yuri said the second half of his sentence for him.

There was a moment of silence in the conference room.

Masakazu Yamada's gaze fell on Yuri Chihaya's face, paused for two seconds, and then slowly nodded.

"I worked with Shinji Miki at the bank for twelve years. He was never the type to stand up for others."

"The position of head of the personnel department relies on being adept at navigating social situations and avoiding offending anyone. Today, in this setting, in front of the branch manager, he said those kinds of things to Kiryu-kun."

Masakazu Yamada raised his eyes, his voice very low.

"This only shows that someone is behind him, asking him to do this."

Chihaya Yuri's brows were furrowed.

"Section Chief, who do you think this person is?"

Instead of answering immediately, Masakazu Yamada asked, "Chihaya, how much do you know about the factions within the Osaka branch?"

Chihaya Yuri remained silent for two seconds.

"Not much. But I know the basic framework."

Tell me about it.

Chihaya Yuri glanced at Kiryu Yaya, as if to confirm whether this topic was appropriate to discuss in front of him.

Masakazu Yamada noticed her hesitation and gently shook his head.

"Kiryu-kun has already been dragged into this. The more he knows, the safer he is."

Chihaya Yuri then spoke.

"With the economic downturn, banks are incurring more and more bad debts. Currently, the factions within the Osaka branch can be roughly divided into two groups."

"The first stock advocates for a complete sell-off and write-off. The bubble has already burst; continuing to cover it up will only make the hole bigger."

"Clear out what needs to be cleared out, write off what needs to be written off, and squeeze out all the pus so that banks can move forward with a lighter burden."

Masakazu Yamada nodded.

"What about the second share?"

"The other group is the conservative faction centered around Minister Ogaki. The economic downturn is faster than expected, and if bad debts are written off on a large scale now, the branch's financial statements will look very bad."

"So they want to put it on hold, postpone it if possible, and if that doesn't work, they'll borrow new money to pay off old debts, just to get through this period first."

Chihaya Yuri lowered her voice slightly: "They value seniority, procedures, and personal relationships. In their view, a bank isn't a place that operates based on individual ability, but rather a system maintained by rules, senior-junior relationships, and harmony."

"Section Chief Iwakura Tsuyoshi, as a former subordinate of Department Chief Ogaki, is also in this faction."

"So when he suddenly started attacking me just now, I was wondering if it was because Kiryu-kun had been too outstanding at the bank lately, which aroused the hostility of these conservative old guys."

Upon hearing this, Kiryu Yaya pondered for a moment.

After Chihaya Yuri's explanation, he had a clearer understanding of the camps at the mid-level meeting earlier.

Masakazu Yamada pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "That is indeed possible. Those guys love to suppress promising newcomers to prove the importance of seniority."

"But I still don't understand why Takafumi Todo and Shinji Miki are following behind?"

Chihaya Yuri frowned: "That's something I'm worried about too."

"The General Affairs Department is in charge of the budget and processes. Minister Todo previously preferred to deal with matters objectively and not participate in the debate over policy, so he was considered a neutral party outside of the two forces."

"But could there be some other reason why Shinji Miki is so clearly siding with Section Chief Tsuyoshi Iwakura today?"

Masakazu Yamada shook his head: "I'm not too sure about that either."

As he spoke, he looked at Kiryu Yaya and comforted him, "Kiryu-kun, you did a good job today, but don't be scared by this scene. Anyway, with me and Section Chief Chihaya here, we definitely won't let the leaders of other departments bully you."

Kiryu Yaya looked at Yamada Masakazu's tired yet composed face, and then glanced at Chihaya Yuri.

"Section Chief, Department Head—"

Kiryu Yaya spoke up: "I'm sorry to have troubled you with today's events."

Masakazu Yamada waved his hand: "Don't say I'm causing trouble. You're from the Financing Review Division, and I'm the head of the Financing Review Division. What you do is the division's business. What the division does is my business."

Chihaya Yuri then looked up and glanced at Kiryu Yaya: "The section chief is right. It's already quite impressive that you were able to withstand the pressure from Section Chief Iwakura and Section Chief Miki today. Any other newcomer would have panicked long ago."

Kiryu Yaya chuckled: "Actually, I'm panicking too."

"I can't tell."

Chihaya Yuri's tone carried a rare hint of teasing.

Masakazu Yamada chuckled and said, "Alright, don't overthink it. We'll deal with whatever comes our way."

Kiryu Yaya nodded and followed the two out of the conference room.

Four o'clock in the afternoon.

The internal phone rang.

Yuka Nakamura, who was sitting in front, answered the call, responded twice, and then turned to look at him.

"Kiryu-kun, this is a call from the switchboard. A lady named Miyazawa is looking for you."

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Kiryu Yaya immediately got up, walked over, and took the receiver.

"Feed?"

-

"Kiryu-kun, it's me."

Keiko Miyazawa's voice came through the receiver: "Mr. Uesugi has found out."

Kiryu Yaya's expression immediately turned serious: "Please speak."

Keiko Miyazawa said on the other end of the phone, "Among the shareholders of Hachisuke Co., Ltd., there is a company called Ōgaki Asset Management Co., Ltd. The representative director of that company is named Ōgaki Masami."

She paused, then lowered her voice slightly: "I had Mr. Uesugi investigate—Ogaki Masami is Ogaki Kiyomasa's wife. And Ogaki Kiyomasa is their eldest daughter."

Kiryu Yaya's eyes narrowed slightly.

In other words, Kiyomasa Ogaki's wife and daughter effectively control an asset management company.

This company also holds a 10% stake in Eighth Asset Co., Ltd.

The business objectives of Eight Assets Company include "debt recovery" and "collateral disposal," which are typical businesses for handling non-performing assets of banks.

Kiyomasa Ogaki himself was the head of the financing department at Mitsubishi Bank's Osaka branch, and his daily work involved approving loans, determining collateral terms, and handling non-performing loans.

The wife and daughter's company holds eight shares, while the husband approves loans and handles bad debts at the bank.

Kiryu Yaya mentally went through this line again:

If a portion of the collateral disposal business undertaken by the Eighth Asset Management Company happens to be non-performing loans formed after Kiyoshi Ohgaki approved and disbursed them, then it constitutes a complete closed loop of profit transfer.

If true, then Kiyomasa Ogaki would have committed the crime of "breach of duty" under Japanese criminal law.

If a trustee, for their own benefit or the benefit of a third party, violates the task and causes property loss to the entruster, they may be sentenced to imprisonment for up to five years or fined up to 500,000 yen.

Kiyomasa Ogaki, as the head of the bank's financing department, abused his power to dispose of non-performing assets at low prices to companies controlled by his relatives, which is a typical example of dereliction of duty.

In addition, accepting kickbacks or points may also constitute the crime of "bribery".

Even if he escapes criminal prosecution, internal disciplinary action within the bank would be enough to ruin his reputation, subjecting him to mandatory retirement, confiscation of ill-gotten gains, and a permanent ban from the financial industry.

Thinking of this, Kiryu Yaya's lips curled into a slight smile.

Kiyomasa Ogaki, you can't escape now.

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