Nui Onoue
Encyclopedia
is the former owner of the Japanese restaurant „Egawa“ in Osaka
, Japan. At the end of the 1980s, Onoue for a short time handled astronomical sums of investment capital, becoming one of the people symbolizing the Japanese bubble economy. In the last stages of the bubble the financing of her stock purchases turned sour and she was arrested, tried and convicted of fraud
involving financial institutions.
Before long, she personally took large loans from banks and started trading stocks. During the bubble's climax in 1988, she had received loans from financial institutions of 227 billion yen, held close to 40 billion yen in timed deposits, had made a profit of 4.8 billion yen from stocks, purchased 28.8 billion yen worth of warikō discounted bonds, and paid 5.5 billion yen in interest rates.
But when the gloom of the bubble became visible, her investments suddenly worsened and she acquired astronomical debts. She now started the fraudulent behaviour that she had been involved in previously more seriously. Her main scam consisted of having acquainted bank managers of Tōyō Shinyo Kinko bank branches issue certificates for fictional deposit accounts, taking these to other financial institutions where she used the certificates to free and receive stock and bonds previously given as securities. Until her arrest, she fraudulently acquired 342 billion yen from 12 financial institutions including nonbanking banks.
Before long this forgery of securities was discovered, which led to her arrest for fraud on August 13, 1991. The money she borrowed from financial institutions amounted to a total of 2 trillion 773.6 billion yen, with return payments reaching a total of 2 trillion 306 billion yen. The bankruptcy proceedings commenced during detention set her total debt at 430 billion yen, the highest ever accumulated by an individual in Japan.
In court, Onoue's lawyer's stressing that she held no responsibility as she had absolutely no knowledge of stocks and was being manipulated by her surroundings was not heard and she was sentenced to 12 years in prison.
The two banks that handled huge amounts of the financing both do not exist anymore. The Industrial Bank of Japan
was consumed in a merger with Fuji Bank
that created Mizuho Corporate Bank
, and the financially failed Tōyō Shinyo Kinko bank partially merged with a number of prefectural credit unions.
's Kongōbuji Hōon'in temple and adapted the name of Junkō. Being closely acquainted with the Hiraoka family, she participated on an enlightenment tour to a Buddhist temple in India (Gyume temple), organized by the family. At that time, Onoue donated 20 million yen to the Gyume temple, but the Hiraoka family stresses that they made the donation. On the same tour, Onoue and Hiraoka together met the Dalai Lama
. After that, Hiraoka invited the Dalai Lama to the Nenbutsu sect's Temple of Immeasurable Happiness.
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
, Japan. At the end of the 1980s, Onoue for a short time handled astronomical sums of investment capital, becoming one of the people symbolizing the Japanese bubble economy. In the last stages of the bubble the financing of her stock purchases turned sour and she was arrested, tried and convicted of fraud
Fraud
In criminal law, a fraud is an intentional deception made for personal gain or to damage another individual; the related adjective is fraudulent. The specific legal definition varies by legal jurisdiction. Fraud is a crime, and also a civil law violation...
involving financial institutions.
Investment Fraud
Onoue's restaurant flourished when she earned a reputation of accurately predicting stock development and horse racing for her customers. Especially in the advent of the bubble her predictions became uncanny, and many customers from security financing and banks visited her restaurant as she became known as a fortune teller rather than a restaurant owner.Before long, she personally took large loans from banks and started trading stocks. During the bubble's climax in 1988, she had received loans from financial institutions of 227 billion yen, held close to 40 billion yen in timed deposits, had made a profit of 4.8 billion yen from stocks, purchased 28.8 billion yen worth of warikō discounted bonds, and paid 5.5 billion yen in interest rates.
But when the gloom of the bubble became visible, her investments suddenly worsened and she acquired astronomical debts. She now started the fraudulent behaviour that she had been involved in previously more seriously. Her main scam consisted of having acquainted bank managers of Tōyō Shinyo Kinko bank branches issue certificates for fictional deposit accounts, taking these to other financial institutions where she used the certificates to free and receive stock and bonds previously given as securities. Until her arrest, she fraudulently acquired 342 billion yen from 12 financial institutions including nonbanking banks.
Before long this forgery of securities was discovered, which led to her arrest for fraud on August 13, 1991. The money she borrowed from financial institutions amounted to a total of 2 trillion 773.6 billion yen, with return payments reaching a total of 2 trillion 306 billion yen. The bankruptcy proceedings commenced during detention set her total debt at 430 billion yen, the highest ever accumulated by an individual in Japan.
In court, Onoue's lawyer's stressing that she held no responsibility as she had absolutely no knowledge of stocks and was being manipulated by her surroundings was not heard and she was sentenced to 12 years in prison.
The two banks that handled huge amounts of the financing both do not exist anymore. The Industrial Bank of Japan
Industrial Bank of Japan
The , based in Tokyo, Japan, was one of the largest banks in the world during the latter half of the 20th century.It combined with Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank and Fuji Bank in 2002 to form Mizuho Financial Group.- History :...
was consumed in a merger with Fuji Bank
Fuji Bank
The was one of Japan's major banks during the post-World War II era. It combined with Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank and the Industrial Bank of Japan in 2000 to form Mizuho Financial Group, and changed its name to Mizuho Corporate Bank in 2002 after transferring its retail banking operations to Mizuho...
that created Mizuho Corporate Bank
Mizuho Corporate Bank
, or MHCB, is the corporate and investment banking subsidiary of Mizuho Financial Group, the second-biggest Japanese financial services conglomerate...
, and the financially failed Tōyō Shinyo Kinko bank partially merged with a number of prefectural credit unions.
Religion
In the end of 1970, according to former high school principal Hiraoka Shizuto, Onoue became a monk at Mount KōyaMount Koya
is the name of mountains in Wakayama Prefecture to the south of Osaka. Also, Kōya-san is a modifying word for Kongōbuji . There is no one mountain officially called Kōya-san in Japan....
's Kongōbuji Hōon'in temple and adapted the name of Junkō. Being closely acquainted with the Hiraoka family, she participated on an enlightenment tour to a Buddhist temple in India (Gyume temple), organized by the family. At that time, Onoue donated 20 million yen to the Gyume temple, but the Hiraoka family stresses that they made the donation. On the same tour, Onoue and Hiraoka together met the Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama is a high lama in the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" branch of Tibetan Buddhism. The name is a combination of the Mongolian word далай meaning "Ocean" and the Tibetan word bla-ma meaning "teacher"...
. After that, Hiraoka invited the Dalai Lama to the Nenbutsu sect's Temple of Immeasurable Happiness.