Managing Director, CEO　Toshihiko Tanaka

Born in 1960 in Imari City, Saga Prefecture, he enrolled in the Department of Resource Engineering, Faculty of Engineering at Kumamoto University in 1978.

In 1982, he joined Kumamoto Kenmin Television (KKT), where he began his career as a news reporter. After gaining extensive experience in journalism, he held several key positions, including General Manager of the News and Production Division.

In 2001, he was selected for the U.S. Department of State’s ”International Visitor Program”, where he participated in training programs across the United States under the theme of “Societal Transformation through Digitalization,” further deepening his insights into social change.

In 2009, he was appointed President and Representative Director of Kongo, Ltd., headquartered in Kumamoto prefecture. In 2021, he became Chairman of the Board of the Kumamoto Prefecture Industrial Association, serving in the role for four years.

He currently holds multiple leadership positions in regional industry organizations, including Chairman of the Kumamoto Cross-Innovation Council, and continues to contribute to industrial development and regional revitalization in Kumamoto.

Advisor　Hideki Wakabayashi

He began his career at Nomura Research Institute, where he engaged in technology research, as well as research on small and medium-sized enterprises and corporate analysis. He later transitioned to equity research and was promoted to Senior Researcher.

He subsequently served as Director and Senior Analyst at Dresdner Kleinwort Benson Securities, Managing Director, Head of Equity Research, and Chief Analyst at J.P. Morgan Securities Japan, and Head of Research and Senior Analyst at Mizuho Securities.

He later co-founded a Japan-focused equity hedge fund, serving as President and Fund Manager, and subsequently as CEO before stepping down.

In academia, he has held several prominent positions at Tokyo University of Science, including  Head of the MOT (Management of Technology)  Program, Director of the Research Center for Technology Management and Financial Engineering for Social Implementation, and University Council Member.

He retired from Tokyo University of Science in March 2026. Since April 2026, he has been serving as Distinguished Professor at the Research and Education Institute for Semiconductors and Informatics (REISI) , Kumamoto University. He currently works alternately between the Tokyo and Kumamoto offices (three days per week on a biweekly basis), teaches four courses, and has been leading MOT programs for working professionals. He also serves as a Visiting Professor in the MBA program at Ritsumeikan University.

Since 2020, he has been a Technical Committee Member at NEDO, contributing to the evaluation and advisory of numerous semiconductor-related projects. He also serves as Chair of the Policy Proposal Task Force of JEITA’s Semiconductor Committee (J-SIA) and as an expert member of the Semiconductor and Digital Industry Strategy Committee.

As a sell-side analyst, he covered the semiconductor and electronics sectors for over a decade and was ranked No.1 five times in analyst rankings by Nikkei and other publications. In 1997, he was listed in International Who’s Who. He has contributed to the Nikkei “Keizai Kyoshitsu” column a total of ten times.

As a fund manager, he achieved an annualized return of 9.4% over a 10-year period (January 2006 to September 2014), with a Sharpe ratio of 0.93 and a Sortino ratio of 2.1.

In MOT education, as of March 2026, he has supervised approximately 100 graduation papers, producing graduates including executive officers of listed companies and entrepreneurs.

He is the author of numerous books, including "Evolution of the Digital Archipelago", "The Center of Gravity in Management", "The Truth About Hedge Funds", "How Japan’s Electronics Industry Can Revive", and "Does Japan’s Electronics Industry Have a Future?"

Director, CFO　Takakazu Masaki

Special Assistant to Distinguished Professor Wakabayashi. Certified Public Accountant.

He has extensive expertise in management, finance, and accounting, developed through his experience at Ernst & Young ShinNihon LLC, Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd., and a business succession and turnaround fund focused on small and medium-sized enterprises.

He is currently engaged in the management of multiple small and mid-sized companies in Japan.

He completed the MOT (Management of Technology) program under Professor Wakabayashi in March 2020 and March 2026.

Director　Fumiyo Harada

Fumiyo Harada joined the Development Bank of Japan Inc. (formerly the Development Bank of Japan) and has extensive experience in cross-border investments and infrastructure and energy finance in Japan and overseas.

She has held senior roles including Senior Investment Officer (Infrastructure) at the International Finance Corporation, Vice President of Development Bank of Japan Inc. Singapore, and Executive Officer in charge of sustainability at Development Bank of Japan Inc.

Since June 2022, she has been engaged in GX (Green Transformation)-related investments and research, while also serving on multiple government committees and as an evaluator for the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO).

Auditor　Hiroshi Sugiyama

A qualified Foreign Lawyer (New York), he began his career at the Bank of Japan’s International Department before pursuing graduate studies at Columbia Law School in the United States. He subsequently worked at Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, a New York-headquartered international law firm, in both its Tokyo and New York offices (M&A practice).

During his time in private practice, he advised on a wide range of cross-border transactions, including capital markets transactions (overseas fundraising), listings on U.S. and Hong Kong stock exchanges, international M&A, corporate governance matters, and cross-border restructuring.

He later joined Amazon Japan G.K. as in-house counsel, where he served as Head of Legal for the Operations division (logistics and compliance). In this role, he led negotiations with major logistics providers, contributed to the development of new delivery models, and oversaw a broad spectrum of legal matters, including compliance and customer support.

Currently, based in both Tokyo and Kumamoto, he serves as a director of listed companies and startups. Leveraging an integrated perspective that combines strategic legal expertise with hands-on management experience, he advises startups and regional growth companies on overseas expansion strategies, M&A, business succession, and strategic alliances.

In addition, he contributes to regional and academic initiatives as an Advisor for Kumamoto Prefecture’s Comprehensive Strategy Promotion, Special Advisor to Kumamoto University, and Visiting Professor at the School of Humanities and Sciences, Tokai University, where he also serves as Executive Advisor to the Center for Industry-Academia Collaboration. Through these roles, he actively promotes industry–government–academia collaboration, university spin-offs, and open innovation.

Advisor　Prof. Horng-Show (Frank) Koo（Visiting Professor of NYCU）