Rating: 
Summary: Culture clashes and financial mismanagement on a large scale
Review: In the 1980's, Japan was considered an economic powerhouse and their sun was still rising. There was genuine fear in the United States of that power; the news broadcasts of the time were full of new Japanese purchases of properties in the U. S. and there was talk of restricting how much could be purchased. Much of this was based on real estate prices in Japan and some of the figures are incredible. At one time, the land area of the imperial palace, approximately 1.15 square kilometers, was estimated to be equal in value to the entire state of California or the entire country of Canada.
However, most of this value was nothing more than a speculative bubble, and very early into the nineties, it crashed. This left the Japanese banks with billions of dollars of uncollectible loans and looking for a way to survive. With deepest reluctance, some original thinkers in the Japanese banking community looked to American capital vendors to assist in their recovery. This is the story of those events, but it is just as much a story of the contrast and clash of two cultures.
In America, the flow of capital is largely freewheeling, the ideal is that it will always move to where it can most quickly be reproduced. However, in Japan, that is not the case. Lending is done based largely on personal and institutional relationships. Cooperation, even to the point of losing money, is the cultural imperative, reinforced by tradition and social pressures. It was considered very unacceptable for banks to call in unserviceable debt, with some banks referring to insolvent companies as "their children." Therefore, when the bubble burst, most banks themselves were insolvent.
However, the leaders of the banks did not come clean, preferring to hide their problems with accounting tricks. One humorous incident is related where the true records were hidden in a closet when Japanese government inspectors were conducting an on-site audit. This behavior, considered criminal in the United States, was much more acceptable in Japan, which points out what are the real lessons to be learned from this book.
Although the economic might of Japan leads those in the western nations to believe that it is economically similar, in fact it is not. The differences are dramatic and the explanations of how those cultural differences make economic differences make this book very interesting. Without the cultural contrasts, this is just another story about a weak, bankrupt company being taken over by another. While interesting, there is no real intensity to the story.
I was amazed at reading how an American company that specializes in takeovers managed to purchase an interest in an insolvent Japanese bank and how all parties handled the event. There were political repercussions on both sides of the Pacific and it was necessary for some fundamental changes to be made in the Japanese financial systems. The events took place in the early 1990's, well after the economies of Japan and the United States had two decades to get to know each other. And yet, there was still a lot of misunderstanding and some naiveté on both sides.
The Americans made the typical mistakes of thinking that the circumstances were no different than when they were on Wall Street. As soon as the company was saved and the price had gone up, they wanted to take their profits and run. This is anathema to the Japanese, and they should have known that. Their attempt to do so created a lot of unnecessary ill will that needed to be smoothed over. The Japanese also made the typical mistake of thinking that the Americans would act like Japanese after they purchased a Japanese company.
This is an excellent book on international finance and the recurring problems of the Japanese economy. For years, the Asian form of crony capitalism was considered the model for economic growth, and a force that could not be stopped. In this book, you learn the fundamental flaws of such a system and how difficult it is for two cultures to engage in an economic marriage of convenience, even when there is no choice in the matter.
Rating: 
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Review: "I would put an exclamation point at the end of all these sentences! On this one! And on that one!"The above speech from Seinfeld's Elaine pretty much sums up my feelings regarding Ms. Tett's attempts at "writing". I feel like Franklin Dixon (yes, he of Hardy Boys fame) wrote this account of LTCB/Shinsei. Much of the dialogue (whether direct quote, questionable translation, or fanciful conjecture) is peppered with inappropriately many exclamation points, making the story sound like a teenage mystery adventure novel. Aside from the unnecessary dramatization, and the author's tendency to intersperse good economic analysis with poorly considered social commentary about Japan, the book is informative and interesting. If you are interested in learning about the main players in the Shinsei drama, and learning a fair bit about the differences between Japanese and western political and financial systems, then this book is definitely worth the three stars I am giving it. I just finished reading Saving the Sun, and today (2004-Feb-19 in Japan) Shinsei actually completed the IPO mentioned in the book. The shares were offered at the upper end of the range, and traded at a 66% premium. It looks like Collins, Flowers and Co. will be making a handsome profit for their investors, after all. Let's wait and see #1: let's see if New LTCB Partners CV (Netherlands) is allowed to get away with paying zero tax in Japan. Let's wait and see #2: let's see if Japan ever allows foreign investors to get this much control in this profitable a local investment ever again. Let's wait and see #3: let's see if the Shinsei experience has any lasting (positive) effect on reforming the Japanese financial system -- history says it won't, but we keep hoping. Finally, one material transgression worth noting is the author's reference to Anil Kashyap of "Chicago University". Professor Kashyap is certainly a good teacher and a great researcher, but we prefer to refer to the institution as the "University of Chicago" -- please take note for the 2d edition, Ms. Tett.
Rating: 
Summary: The Ups and Downs of Japanese Banking
Review: "Saving the Sun" is a masterful work detailing not only the reasons for the collapse of the Japanese banking system, but of the problems encountered by bankers and investors from disparate traditions seeking ultimately to speak one economic language. One of the major reasons why the book resonates is due to the unique qualifications of Gillian Tett to pen such a challenging work about a nation which, to many westerners, remains shrouded in exotic mystery. Tett was trained as a social anthropologist, gravitating into journalism and rising to become Tokyo bureau chief of the prestigious Financial Times. Tett is able to wear two hats simultaneously, providing us with a more entertaining as well as informative work due to her sociological as well as economic insights. Rather than supplying a series of charts explaining what happened to Japan's banking culture, Tett instead supplies an informative analysis of events by focusing closely on the movers and shakers from Japan and America involved in the volatile existence of Japanese banking from the nation's crushing defeat in World War Two to post-9-11. The tide of events is organized into basic categories, all flavored with the insight of a trained financial journalist telling her story in the manner of a perceptive novelist. The story is seen from the perspective of Long Term Credit Bank, one of the nation's most revered institutions, which soared like an eagle during Japan's heady days of economic expansion, then descended like a wounded duck in the wake of a sea tide of bad loans occasioned in large measure by inflexible cultural traditions. When its hapless president, LTCB veteran Katsunobi Onogi, was ultimately arrested and successfully prosecuted for covering up series' of bad loans concerning which he was expected to take diligent action, he lamented that he was victimized by a tradition that mandated such an attitude. Tett reveals the tragic results of a tradition in which, whereas Swiss and American bankers expected losses to be written off and no more money extended to the distressed subsidiary banks and companies, the powers that be believed that the economic system should be treated as a family. To cut off such institutions involved, in the Japanese view, a divorce rather than a necessary business move. Tett demonstates the markedly different ways that the Americans and Japanese see the overall economic picture, along with basic differences in how work forces are observed, when she writes about the purchase of the collapsed LTCB by an American team led by Kentuckian Tim Collins, friend and confidante of President Bill Clinton. The American group led by Collins changed the name of LTCB to Shinsei, then set out to achieve a profound positive change. Never is the disparity between American and Japanese cultural viewpoints more evident than when Collins and a team of Americans decide to have lunch in the bank canteen. The extroverted Kentucky business giant and his group, which includes Vernon Jordan, seeks to socialize with members of the work force, who have never seen such a display in their lives, sticking to their own small clusters of co-workers and disdaining fraternization. Gillian Tett has provided the reader with a great service. This book provides an opportunity to understand the economic strategies of the Japanese economic system and the cultural divide that often permeates interaction with Americans who disdain tradition for a practical "bottom line" operating pattern.
Rating:
Summary: ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ?
Review: "I would put an exclamation point at the end of all these sentences! On this one! And on that one!" The above speech from Seinfeld's Elaine pretty much sums up my feelings regarding Ms. Tett's attempts at "writing". I feel like Franklin Dixon (yes, he of Hardy Boys fame) wrote this account of LTCB/Shinsei. Much of the dialogue (whether direct quote, questionable translation, or fanciful conjecture) is peppered with inappropriately many exclamation points, making the story sound like a teenage mystery adventure novel. Aside from the unnecessary dramatization, and the author's tendency to intersperse good economic analysis with poorly considered social commentary about Japan, the book is informative and interesting. If you are interested in learning about the main players in the Shinsei drama, and learning a fair bit about the differences between Japanese and western political and financial systems, then this book is definitely worth the three stars I am giving it. I just finished reading Saving the Sun, and today (2004-Feb-19 in Japan) Shinsei actually completed the IPO mentioned in the book. The shares were offered at the upper end of the range, and traded at a 66% premium. It looks like Collins, Flowers and Co. will be making a handsome profit for their investors, after all. Let's wait and see #1: let's see if New LTCB Partners CV (Netherlands) is allowed to get away with paying zero tax in Japan. Let's wait and see #2: let's see if Japan ever allows foreign investors to get this much control in this profitable a local investment ever again. Let's wait and see #3: let's see if the Shinsei experience has any lasting (positive) effect on reforming the Japanese financial system -- history says it won't, but we keep hoping. Finally, one material transgression worth noting is the author's reference to Anil Kashyap of "Chicago University". Professor Kashyap is certainly a good teacher and a great researcher, but we prefer to refer to the institution as the "University of Chicago" -- please take note for the 2d edition, Ms. Tett.
Rating:
Summary: The Ups and Downs of Japanese Banking
Review: "Saving the Sun" is a masterful work detailing not only the reasons for the collapse of the Japanese banking system, but of the problems encountered by bankers and investors from disparate traditions seeking ultimately to speak one economic language. One of the major reasons why the book resonates is due to the unique qualifications of Gillian Tett to pen such a challenging work about a nation which, to many westerners, remains shrouded in exotic mystery. Tett was trained as a social anthropologist, gravitating into journalism and rising to become Tokyo bureau chief of the prestigious Financial Times. Tett is able to wear two hats simultaneously, providing us with a more entertaining as well as informative work due to her sociological as well as economic insights. Rather than supplying a series of charts explaining what happened to Japan's banking culture, Tett instead supplies an informative analysis of events by focusing closely on the movers and shakers from Japan and America involved in the volatile existence of Japanese banking from the nation's crushing defeat in World War Two to post-9-11. The tide of events is organized into basic categories, all flavored with the insight of a trained financial journalist telling her story in the manner of a perceptive novelist. The story is seen from the perspective of Long Term Credit Bank, one of the nation's most revered institutions, which soared like an eagle during Japan's heady days of economic expansion, then descended like a wounded duck in the wake of a sea tide of bad loans occasioned in large measure by inflexible cultural traditions. When its hapless president, LTCB veteran Katsunobi Onogi, was ultimately arrested and successfully prosecuted for covering up series' of bad loans concerning which he was expected to take diligent action, he lamented that he was victimized by a tradition that mandated such an attitude. Tett reveals the tragic results of a tradition in which, whereas Swiss and American bankers expected losses to be written off and no more money extended to the distressed subsidiary banks and companies, the powers that be believed that the economic system should be treated as a family. To cut off such institutions involved, in the Japanese view, a divorce rather than a necessary business move. Tett demonstates the markedly different ways that the Americans and Japanese see the overall economic picture, along with basic differences in how work forces are observed, when she writes about the purchase of the collapsed LTCB by an American team led by Kentuckian Tim Collins, friend and confidante of President Bill Clinton. The American group led by Collins changed the name of LTCB to Shinsei, then set out to achieve a profound positive change. Never is the disparity between American and Japanese cultural viewpoints more evident than when Collins and a team of Americans decide to have lunch in the bank canteen. The extroverted Kentucky business giant and his group, which includes Vernon Jordan, seeks to socialize with members of the work force, who have never seen such a display in their lives, sticking to their own small clusters of co-workers and disdaining fraternization. Gillian Tett has provided the reader with a great service. This book provides an opportunity to understand the economic strategies of the Japanese economic system and the cultural divide that often permeates interaction with Americans who disdain tradition for a practical "bottom line" operating pattern.
Rating: 
Summary: A PIECE OF THE "JAPAN IS NO.1"STORY
Review: A well written, very easy read which captures a lot of information in a relatively short book, each section (1-LTCB's rise 2-The sale/purchase 3-the transformation) could be a book on its own. While I accept that this book could not go further into MOF's failure to regulate as it should have done, Gillian makes it clear that this book is the history of one bank not the Japanese financial system, I wish she had been able to do so and I also have to agree with John Zwaanstra's comment that the bad debt work out should have been gone into in greater depth. Still, without going for thousand pages into all the complex issues the book captures nearly all the different pressures that played into decision making and makes one think about the results from a variety of perspectives. In sum, I greatly enjoyed reading it and strongly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Fun and worth reading
Review: A well written, very easy read which captures a lot of information in a relatively short book, each section (1-LTCB's rise 2-The sale/purchase 3-the transformation) could be a book on its own. While I accept that this book could not go further into MOF's failure to regulate as it should have done, Gillian makes it clear that this book is the history of one bank not the Japanese financial system, I wish she had been able to do so and I also have to agree with John Zwaanstra's comment that the bad debt work out should have been gone into in greater depth. Still, without going for thousand pages into all the complex issues the book captures nearly all the different pressures that played into decision making and makes one think about the results from a variety of perspectives. In sum, I greatly enjoyed reading it and strongly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: overall fine, but...
Review: As others have commented, Saving the Sun provides a good chronology to the LTCB takeover, a significant event in Japan's recent history. But there are problems with the book. I lived in Japan during most of the 1990s, and Tett's constant pigeon-holing of the Japanese and American attitudes contains some truth but is exaggerated and becomes tedious. (Even the title is an exaggeration.) Tett may be a financial journalist, but there are enough errors that one questions her expertise on the subject matter. In addition, it is difficult for the reader to get a sense of the scope in some sections as numbers are almost never provided within a clear context. For example, Japan's debt may be "horrendous" although its savings may be "staggering." What is the horrendous/staggering ratio, and how has it changed? Still, readers interested in Japan should read through the shortcomings because the anecdotes Tett provides are interesting and the story itself is important to understanding what is happening inside Japan's financial sector today.
Rating:
Summary: Japan's Long Decline
Review: Having been involved in several US acquisitions, this books seems tame. Maybe by Japanese standards the book is an eye-opener, but frankly I was bored reading it. Spicing it up with a few suicides was interesting--so maybe in JP a merger like this was radical--but I doubt it (JP has a high suicide rate anyway). Of interest to me was how in the US shares and M&A fees are used as legal bribes for crony capitalism (Goldman Sachs et al), while in JP bank loans are used to the same purpose. It reflects the shares/loans mentality between the US and JP/Germany. Other than that, routine.
Rating:
Summary: Routine Journo book on a acquisition
Review: Having been involved in several US acquisitions, this books seems tame. Maybe by Japanese standards the book is an eye-opener, but frankly I was bored reading it. Spicing it up with a few suicides was interesting--so maybe in JP a merger like this was radical--but I doubt it (JP has a high suicide rate anyway). Of interest to me was how in the US shares and M&A fees are used as legal bribes for crony capitalism (Goldman Sachs et al), while in JP bank loans are used to the same purpose. It reflects the shares/loans mentality between the US and JP/Germany. Other than that, routine.
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