Team size: Seven

What are the most significant cases, transactions or projects that your legal team has recently been involved in?

In May 2021, a fraudulent transfer of funds occurred in which a subsidiary of the Company lost approximately US$155m in cash. We, together with our infosec team, identified that the funds were illegally transferred to a specific cryptocurrency exchange, where they were converted into bitcoin and sent to a specific cold wallet, where they were stored. After our careful forensic investigation, and with the cooperation of law enforcement in the US and Japan, we were able to resolve the case. The offender was arrested in December 2021, and the lost fund was successfully returned in July 2022.

Could you share an example of a time when your team came up with an innovation that improved how your legal team works and did not come at a large expense?

We are aggressively introducing legal tech solutions in our day-to-day operations, such as electronic signatures and AI-based automated contract review and translation systems, which enable us to handle various legal, compliance and IP-related tasks, with a small number of people.

How important is choosing to work with external lawyers who align with your company’s values?

Working with external lawyers who align with our values is important for many reasons. They can provide us with appropriate solutions from a third-party perspective that we do not have. This can reduce the cost and time needed to achieve our goals. Most importantly, I believe that external lawyers can provide us with psychological security, we can work together pleasantly, comfortably, and with peace of mind.

How do you suggest in-house lawyers build strong relationships with business partners?

I believe that close communication with our business partners is essential for successful transactions. That is why I always tell my staff that they should not just settle for emails, but they should meet and chat with their business partners in person, so that they can closely interact with one another. I also encourage my staff to add business value to discussions, not just legal opinions, as we are in-house lawyers and not external counsel.