Department chiefs from the Industrial Bank of Japan’s headquarters would take the bullet train down from Tokyo to Osaka in order to attend a weekly ceremony presided over by the toad. On arriving at Nui’s house, the IBJ bankers would join the elite stockbrokers from Yamaichi Securities and other trading houses in a midnight vigil. First they would pat the head of the toad. Then they would recite prayers in front of a set of Buddhist statues in Nui’s garder. Finally Madame Nui would seat herself in front of the toad, go into a trance, and deliver the oracle — which stocks to buy and which to sell. The financial markets in Tokyo trembled at the verdict. At his peak in 1990, the toad controlled more than $10 billion in financial investments, making its owner the world’s largest individual stock investor.
Alex Kerr, Dogs and Demons,
Hill and Wang, 2001, p. 78
January 9, 2010 at 4:05 am
Probably gave better advice than most bankers!
May 30, 2010 at 6:07 am
I wonder if the toad is still in Osaka. On my next trip there I’ll look for it; why crystal balls if there is a toad! Is Mdme Nui out of jail? Maybe she has a seat at BOJ’s board… or maybe eaten by Kerr’s Dogs.
Keep us posted. Cheers.