Japanese billionaire Okada out as chairman of Okada Manila

Japanese billionaire Kazuo Okada has ceased to be the chairman of the board of Tiger Resort Leisure and Entertainment Inc., the developer and operator of casino and resort complex Okada Manila.

"Yes, as of June 16, Mr. Kazuo Okada is no longer the chairman of Tiger Resort Leisure and Entertainment Inc.," Okada Manila Public Relations Manager Mark Alfred Gutierrez told GMA News Online on Friday.

Retired Justice Manuel Lazaro was elected to replace the Japanese businessman, with Kenji Sugiyama as president, during a special stockholders' meeting. Antonio Cojuangco, Rey David and Steve Wolstenholme retained their respective board seats.

Tiger Resort noted the organizational changes were a consequence of the corporate actions initiated by parent Universal Entertainment Corp. that prompted Tiger Resort to call for a special stockholders' meeting.

In a separate notice on June 8, Japan's Universal Entertainment said it has suspended all the rights and authorities held by Okada and established a special investigation committee arising from suspicions "that fraudulent acts were carried out by Mr. Okada" and director Yoshinao Negishi when they extended a ¥2 billion loan from Tiger Resort Asia Ltd. to an unnamed third party in March 2015. The loan was supposedly "in violation of internal processes."

In another progress report on June 19, Universal Entertainment claimed that an internal investigation was able to uncover improper fund transfers made by Okada.

Universal Entertainment Korea Co. Ltd. supposedly disbursed the equivalent of $170,000 to pay for interest related to an $80 million loan taken out by Okada Holdings Ltd., a company entirely owned by Okada and his relatives, for land transactions in South Korea in February 2014.

Also, Okada supposedly withdrew $2.05 million from a bank account of Tiger Resort Asia in March 2015. Universal Entertainment noted the two transactions were done "without the necessary internal procedures" and may "constitute a serious violation of governance." — VS/KVD, GMA News