Some time ago, the world was shocked by Panama Papers; an archive leak from a company named Mossack Fonseca, known for lending a hand for individuals and corporate alike to establish shell companies in Panama. The reasons are varied; from depositing money, to money laundering, and even to avoid taxes.
The reveal of some of the names that appear in the Panama Papers have incited many reactions. There have been indications of money laundering and tax evasion cases currently ongoing in Indonesia based on the names revealed by The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (abbreviated as ICIJ for short). Some of these names include Sandiaga Uno, Riza Chalid, and Chairul Tandjung.
There are also names from different countries in the database, including from Japan. Some of Japan’s biggest companies, such as Marubeni and Fast Retailing (Uniqlo) are also there. Last month, Dwango and Bandai Networks has also been spotted in the database; 2 names that might be familiar to anime fans.
Yesterday (Tuesday, 10/5), more information from the Panama Papers has been released online. This time, Toei Animation Enterprises Limited and Konami have been spotted, involved in Panama Paper‘s Offshore Leaks.
Inside the data, Toei Animation Enterprises Limited is registered under the jurisdiction of British Virgin Island. The company is affiliated with a number of parties, one of them is Kenji Ebato as the shareholder. Kenji Ebato himself is the Chief Director of Toei Animation Inc. He has been involved as a Production Manager in some of Toei‘s projects such as Ashita no Nadja, Dragon Ball, One Piece, and Futari wa Pretty Cure!
Established since 1956, Toei Animation has existed for 60 years, producing well known animated series such as the Precure! series, Digimon, Sailor Moon, and many others.
Other than Toei Animation Enterprises Limited, another familiar name spotted in the recent Panama Papers data is Konami. Reported from ANN, Konami has issued an official statement regarding the issue. Through Konami‘s official site, they have stated that the Konami involved in video game productions as well as Yu-Gi-Oh! trading card games have nothing to do with the Konami Corporations Limited in Panama Papers.
In the ICIJ data leak, a company under the name Konami Corporations Limited is listed in Seychelles and is currently under partnership with the United Arab Emirates.
The Indonesian Anime Times | Original text by Rafly Nugroho, with translations by Videtra Reynaldi
