May 10, 2018

Gojo appoints new COO, Principal and Country Representative

We are pleased to announce that Gojo recently filled three important positions, that of COO, Principal and Country Representative in Myanmar.

Mr. Takefumi Uda joins Gojo as COO from late May 2018. Prior to joining Gojo, Mr.Uda was part of the senior management team and the driving force behind Sushiro, contributing to the company becoming the most successful sushi restaurant operator in Japan. During the 7 years at Sushiro, Mr. Uda was engaged in business planning, handled HR for 35,000+ employees, involved in IT and quality assurance among others. Microfinance and restaurant operation has much similarity in that the quality of front-line staff is the most important part to make the business successful.

Mr. Kuniaki Sanui joined us as Principal in April 2018. Mr. Sanui has 13 years’ experience in the finance and private equity industry, including Mizuho Bank and J-Will Partners, and 3 years at the Boston Consulting Group. His extensive experience is expected to contribute to our fundraising, investment and management support among others. Currently, he is working on fundraising activities within Japan.

Mr. Shun Ito joins Gojo as the Country Representative in Myanmar from June 2018. Mr. Ito used to be a management consultant at Roland Berger and has been determined to join us out of his passion to work for the people of Myanmar. He speaks Japanese, English and Burmese, a rare and perfect combination for a company like Gojo. He will reside in Myanmar with his family members.

Passionate and capable people are the most important competitive edge for finance business, and we are pleased to have them on board. We continue to recruit talented people to achieve our vision and mission to make the Private Sector World Bank.

Takefumi Uda | Chief Operating Officer

After graduating from Osaka University, Takefumi started his consulting career; first as a product development consultant for manufacturing companies at Information Services International-Dentsu and then as a management consultant at A. T. Kearney. After that, he joined Akindo Sushiro, a family sushi restaurant, first as a consultant and then as the Executive Officer and worked as one of the 4 management members of the company. He managed corporate planning, marketing, HR, quality assurance and IT of the company and built organizational & operational foundations to run problem-solving at all level of the company, enabling its sustainable growth. At Sushiro, Takefumi was the driving force of the company’s growth, contributing to transforming Sushiro to be the leading company in the industry. His strength is to develop business foundations and HR system for a “people business” where the quality of the front-line staff works as the competitive edge. He is a part-time lecturer at Rikkyo University Business Leadership Program.

Kuniaki Sanui | Principal

After having 13 years experience in the finance industry and 3 years at management consulting, Kuniaki joined Gojo in 2018 as a Principal mainly working for fundraising activity inside Japan. After graduating from Hitotsubashi University, he started his career at Mizuho Bank in 2003. After then he joined J-Will Partners, a leading PE fund in Japan in 2006, and worked on investment and management support activities for Japanese enterprises. In 2013 he joined the Boston Consulting Group and was involved in various management consulting projects for manufacturers, transportation companies and media corporations. Prior to Gojo, he worked at Ant Capital Partners, engaging in private equity investments. He loves fishing and spends the weekend in a house located in a coastal area nearby Kamakura.

Shun Ito | Country Representative, Myanmar

After studying at Keio University, Faculty of Economics, and graduating from School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, Shun joined Roland Berger and worked in the Japan and Singapore Offices. As a management consultant, he was involved in multiple projects across Southeast Asia. As a freelance consultant, Shun worked in rural Japan in Akita for a local supermarket chain. His early childhood was spent in the UK and Brazil. Proficient in English and Japanese, he also has basic Burmese skills. Tennis is his favourite sport. During an earlier stint in Myanmar, Shun ordained at a Buddhist monastery and practiced meditation.

February 28, 2018

東京スター銀行と4百万米ドルのコミットメントライン契約を締結

五常・アンド・カンパニー株式会社(以下「五常」)は、株式会社東京スター銀行(以下「東京スター銀行」)と4百万米ドルのコミットメントライン契約の締結を完了したことをお知らせします。この資金は、ドル化経済であるカンボジア事業に利用されます。

東京スター銀行は、総資産が2兆円を超える東京を拠点とする銀行で、台湾の銀行であるCTBC Bank Co. Ltd.の100%子会社です。顧客が金融にかかる心配から解放される「Financial Freedom(ファイナンシャル・フリーダム)」を使命として掲げており、当社の使命である「Financial Access For All」に賛同する形で、顧客の金融の未来を創造する新しい関係を開始しました。

当社の子会社では多くの銀行やマイクロファイナンス投資ファンドからの融資を受けておりますが、日本法人である五常にとっては初の銀行借入となります。比較的低利での資金調達を活用することにより、金融アクセスを持たない顧客層へのローンを拡大していきたいと考えています。

【五常・アンド・カンパニーについて】
五常・アンド・カンパニーは2014年7月の創業以降順調に事業は成長し、現在ではアジア4カ国でマイクロクレジットを中心とした金融サービスを提供しています。

2030年までに民間版の世界銀行となり、1億人以上の顧客に金融サービスを提供し、金融アクセスを人類にとって当たり前のものにすることをミッションに掲げています。

【会社概要】
会社名 五常・アンド・カンパニー株式会社(英文社名)Gojo and Company, Inc.
本社所在地 東京都渋谷区恵比寿南二丁目19番7-501号
代表者 愼 泰俊

<本リリースの問い合わせ先>
info@gojo.co

February 28, 2018

Gojo completed a $4 million commitment line agreement with Tokyo Star Bank

Gojo & Company, Inc. (“Gojo” or “we”) is pleased to announce that we completed the closing of a $4 million commitment line agreement with The Tokyo Star Bank, Limited (“Tokyo Star Bank”). The fund will be mainly utilized for our Cambodia operations, where the economy is dollarized.

Tokyo Star Bank is a Tokyo-based bank with more than $20 billion total assets and is a wholly owned subsidiary of CTBC Bank Co. Ltd., a Taiwanese bank. Its mission is to provide “Financial Freedom”, allowing the customers to be free from concerns over financial matters. This resonates with Gojo’s mission to provide “Financial Access For All “and thus Tokyo Star Bank and Gojo have started a new relationship that will go a long way to create a tension free financial future of our clients.

This marks the first bank borrowing for Gojo, although our affiliates have many banks and impact investors as lenders. By leveraging the relatively low cost of funding, we wish to expand loan funding from Japanese and Taiwanese financial institutions, so that more resources are available for the financially excluded clients in Gojo’s partner countries.

To make this deal happen, many stakeholders, especially shareholders of the Company supported us a lot, and we are truly grateful for it. We wish your continuous support for us.
The alliance with Tokyo Star Bank takes Gojo a step further towards it’s mission to be the “Private Sector World Bank” providing financial access for everyone in developing countries. Gojo aims to reach out to more than 100 million people in all continents by the end of 2030.

Sincerely yours,
Taejun Shin
Founder, Representative Director, and CEO

February 23, 2018

総額約2億円のシリーズB資金調達の第二次クローズを完了しました

ニッセイ・キャピタル株式会社(以下「ニッセイ・キャピタル」)及び株式会社リンクアンドモチベーション(以下「リンクアンドモチベーション」)および個人が五常・アンド・カンパニー株式会社(以下「五常」)の第三者割当増資に応じ、新たに株主として加わります。今回調達した約2億円をもって、シリーズB資金調達の第二次クローズは完了となります。今回調達した資金は主に、既存子会社を含むマイクロファイナンス機関への投資に用いられる予定です。

2000年に設立されたリンクアンドモチベーションは、モチベーションの観点からコンサルティングを提供するユニークな会社です。 同社は、マネジメント理論、社会システム理論、行動経済学、心理学の学術的な洞察を組み合わせて、コンサルティングサービスのコア技術である「モチベーションエンジニアリング」を開発しています。当社は、こうしたモチベーションマネジメントに関するノウハウを事業に活かすことを期待しています。マイクロファイナンスのような「ピープルビジネス」では、スタッフのモチベーションが重要となるためです。

ニッセイ・キャピタルは1991年、日本最大の生命保険会社である日本生命保険株式会社の完全子会社として設立され、日本で最も評判の高いVCの1つとして1,000以上の新興企業に投資してきました。 今回の投資は、投資期間が13年間である8号ファンドによって行われ、長期的視点が大切にされています。ニッセイ・キャピタルの経験から、ビジネスの洞察を得ることができると確信しています。

国内外での事業運営及び投資の実績が豊富なパートナーのご支援を得ることで、五常は成長を加速させていきます。

【五常・アンド・カンパニーについて】
五常・アンド・カンパニーは2014年7月の創業以降順調に事業は成長し、現在ではアジア4カ国でマイクロクレジットを中心とした金融サービスを提供しています。

2030年までに民間版の世界銀行となり、1億人以上の顧客に金融サービスを提供し、金融アクセスを人類にとって当たり前のものにすることをミッションに掲げています。

【会社概要】
会社名 五常・アンド・カンパニー株式会社(英文社名)Gojo and Company, Inc.
本社所在地 東京都渋谷区恵比寿南二丁目19番7-501号
代表者 愼 泰俊

February 23, 2018

Completed the 2nd close of our Series B financing

We are pleased to announce that we completed the 2nd close of our Series B Financing. Link and Motivation Inc. (“Link and Motivation”) and Nissay Capital Co., Ltd. (“Nissay Capital”) joined Gojo & Company Inc. (“Gojo” or “we”) as shareholders. The fund will be mainly used for investments in microfinance institutions, including follow-on investments for the existing affiliates and subsidiaries.

Founded in 2000, Link and Motivation is a unique consulting company providing consulting services from the perspective of motivation. The company combines academic insights of management theory, social system theory, behavioral economics and psychology to develop “Motivation Engineering”, the core technology of its consulting services. Gojo expects that Link and Motivation will bring their expertise on motivation management to our microfinance operation, which is essentially a “people business” for which motivation of staff matters a lot.

Founded in 1991 as a fully-owned subsidiary of Nippon Life Insurance Company, the largest Japanese life insurance company by revenue, Nissay Capital has made investments for more than 1,000 startups as one of the most reputable VCs in Japan. The investment is made by its 8th fund, whose investment tenure is 13 years, enabling the fund to maintain the long-term view with us. We believe that we gain business insights from the experience of Nissay Capital.

We consider this funding another step forward for us to achieve our mission – to be the Private Sector World Bank. Now we are gaining momentum to have more institutional investors. We expect to have the final close of our Series B Financing by 3Q18 to make our total capital more than USD 30 million.

Despite many hurdles ahead of us, we keep calm and carry on with our mission of making quality financial services available to everyone in the world. We wish your continuous support for us.

Sincerely yours,

Taejun Shin
Founder, Representative Director, and CEO

February 2, 2018

CEOの慎泰俊が一橋大学で講演を行いました

2018年1月28日、当社のCEOである慎泰俊が、一橋大学のエグゼクティブMBA学生に対して2時間の講演を行いました。

一橋大学は、日本で最高の英語MBAプログラムを提供しており、シカゴ大学、オックスフォード大学、カリフォルニア大学など、数々の大学や研究機関と学術交流を結び、多数の留学生研究者を擁しています。

この講演会は、サントリーホールディングスの社長である新浪剛史氏、オリックスのシニア・チェアマンである宮内義彦氏も講演を行ってきたビジネス・エグゼクティブの講義シリーズの一つとして行われました。リスナーの理解を深めるために、競争戦略を専門とする楠木建 一橋大学教授によるファシリテーションも行われました。

February 2, 2018

Lecture at Hitotsubashi University, Japan

On 28 January 2018, Taejun Shin, the CEO of Gojo & Company, Inc., delivered a 2 hours lecture for Executive MBA students at the national Hitotsubashi University. Hitotsubashi University offers one of the best MBA programs in Japan and has a large number of international student researchers under academic exchange agreements with several prestigious universities and research institutions including University of Chicago, Oxford and the University of California.

The lecture was presented as part of the lecture series provided by reputable business executives, such as Takeshi Niinami, President and CEO of Suntory, and Yoshihiko Miyauchi the Founder and Senior Chairman of ORIX Corp. to name some. Prof. Ken Kusunoki, a faculty member at Hitotsubashi University and a reputable Professor of Strategy, facilitated the session to further deepen the understanding of the lecture.

Taejun inspired the students who are the middle management people of the world’s largest companies, by providing his personal story, his vision and the business model of Gojo. Gojo expects that the event further augments Gojo’s reputation in the business community and helps develop new business alliances with global companies. 


For further information please contact:
info@gojo.co

January 23, 2018

EOの慎泰俊がGlobal Steering Group for Impact Investment (GSG) の会議にパネリストとして参加

CEOの慎泰俊がGlobal Steering Group for Impact Investment (GSG) の会議にパネリストとして参加しました。

2017年11月28日、当社のCEOである慎泰俊が、GSGジャパンにおいて、日本におけるソーシャルインパクト投資に関する洞察を提供するためにJapan National Advisory Board の会議にて講演を行いました。

Global Steering Group for Impact Investment について
GSGは、インパクト投資と起業家精神をもって、人と地球に利益をもたらす独立したグローバル・ステアリング・グループです。G8の下で英国により創設された Social Impact Investment Taskforce の後継組織として、2015年8月に設立されました。現在、GSGには15の加盟国とEUが加盟しており、有力なネットワーク組織の活発なオブザーバーもいます。Ronald Cohen卿が議長を務めるGSGは、金融、ビジネス、そして慈善の世界のリーダーを集めています。

引用元: http://gsgii.org/about-us/

January 23, 2018

Interaction with the Global Social Impact Investment Steering Group (GSG) Japan National Advisory Board

On 28th November 2017, Gojo CEO Taejun, took part in a meeting of the GSG Japan National Advisory Board to provide insights on improving the number of social impact investments in Japan.

One of the ways to improve the number of social impact investments in Japan is through following the path of other entrepreneurs. An investment professional with a social vision, wanting to contribute to bringing about change in the world, Taejun became one of Japan’s youngest entrepreneurs at the age of twenty-six when he set up Living in Peace, an NPO run “part-time” volunteer workers, in 2007. The NPO even today serves as a role model of how business people can work to tackle social issues while working for companies. Taejun created the first microfinance investment fund in Japan in 2009, and went on to co-found Gojo & Company in 2014 along with two co-founders Sanjay Gandhi, a CPA and experienced microfinance professional from India and Tsuyoshi Nagashima, CPA professional from Tokyo and with a professional workforce spread across the world. Gojo was established with the aim to “make the private World Bank by 2030, providing financial access for everyone” and to serve the financially excluded population of the world through microfinance. At the discussion with the Global Social Impact Investment Group, Taejun spoke about how financial inclusion contributes to better opportunities and enhancing the lives of the clients around the world. Taejun proposed the idea that “entrepreneurs are the consequence of eco-system creation, i.e. we need all actors such as donors, investors, mentors, role models, supportive corporations among the others who support the social entrepreneurs”.

About Gojo & Company, Inc.
Gojo, established in 2014, is a holding company of microfinance institutions around the world. The company is headquartered in Tokyo and has subsidiary microfinance institutions in various countries. Gojo aspires to create a world in which everyone has an opportunity to overcome one’s own destiny and attain a better life. Gojo aims to reach out to more than 100 million people in all continents by the end of 2030.

About Global Social Impact Investment Steering Group
The GSG is an independent global steering group catalyzing impact investment and entrepreneurship to benefit people and the planet. The GSG was established in August 2015 as the successor to and incorporating the work of the Social Impact Investment Taskforce established under the UK’s presidency of the G8. The GSG currently has 15 member countries plus the EU, as well as active observers from leading network organizations. Chaired by Sir Ronald Cohen, the GSG brings together leaders from the worlds of finance, business and philanthropy.

Citation: http://gsgii.org/about-us/


For further information please contact:
info@gojo.co

January 9, 2018

三菱商事の従業員向けにCEOの慎が講演を行いました

2017年11月30日、三菱商事の本社において、当社のCEOである慎泰俊が、約100名の社員を前に講演を行いました。本講演会は、三菱商事株式会社従業員組合によって主催されました。

慎は、自らのバックグラウンドについて触れながら、当社を設立した背景や世界中の金融アクセス持たない人々に金融サービスを提供するために民間の世界銀行を目指したいと伝えました。

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