High-profile Japanese fund manager Yoshiaki Murakami was indicted yesterday on charges of insider trading in a scandal that has embroiled the country's central bank chief, a court official said.
Murakami, 46 and in custody since June 5, apologized as he faced the latest turn of fortunes for a business leader formerly seen as a symbol of a new, more aggressive Japanese corporate model.
"I caused great trouble in various circles," Murakami said in a message released by his lawyer to Japanese media. "I apologize from the bottom of my heart."
Murakami has admitted to an illegal stock transaction based on insider information but insisted it was an unintended mistake.
He is suspected of buying shares in Nippon Broadcasting System in late 2004 and early last year, knowing that Internet firm Livedoor would try to buy a stake of five percent or more in the radio firm, the official said.
Murakami insists he did not think Livedoor, now dogged by its own scandal, had enough capital to buy so large a stake in the broadcaster.
Prosecutors reportedly accuse the fund manager of inciting the Livedoor managers to take over the radio broadcaster and subsequently selling his shares at a higher price.
Prosecutors also indicted MAC Asset Management, the core unit of Murakami's Fund, in connection with the case, the court official said.
Murakami's lawyer yesterday filed a request for bail with the Tokyo District Court.
"I want to return to society as quickly as possible," he was quoted by the Yomiuri Shimbun as telling his lawyer.
The indictment followed the filing on Thursday of a criminal complaint against Murakami by the Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission over his alleged illegal dealings.
The fallout from the Murakami scandal has reached Bank of Japan governor Toshihiko Fukui, who invested ?10 million (US$86,000) in his fund and kept it even after his appointment as central bank chief.
Fukui has faced a storm of criticism but refused to step down from his post. The central bank chief has promised to donate to charity the money in the fund, which has more than doubled to nearly ?25 million, and take a salary cut.
According to an opinion poll released on Thursday, 40 percent of Japanese think the central bank chief should resign.
Another 27 percent said they agreed with Fukui's decision to take responsibility by returning part of his salary and eight percent think his earlier apology was sufficient, the poll showed.
Murakami, a former bureaucrat, joined the fund management industry in 1999 and rose to fame for leading Japan's first hostile takeover offer, bidding for real estate developer and electronic parts maker Shoei.
Murakami, a former trade ministry bureaucrat, is a controversial figure, praised by some for promoting shareholder rights but seen by critics as ruthless and out only for a quick buck.
Murakami's fall from grace came just months after the arrest and indictment of Livedoor's 33-year-old founder Takafumi Horie, who had earlier been a media darling for his casual dress and no-holds-barred takeover bids.
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