Minako Otani

Minako has been a Consultant at the Kekst CNC Tokyo office since 2010. She primarily focuses on corporate and financial communications for multinational companies including stakeholder audits, issue analysis, complex positioning mandates, M&A transactions and shareholder activism, among others, advising Japanese and multinational firms.

Prior to joining Kekst CNC, Minako worked for a global PR firm in Tokyo and was dedicated to communication services for the healthcare industry. During her time, she gained experience in various aspects of corporate communications, including corporate social responsibility.

Minako holds a BA in English Literature from Aoyama Gakuin University. Having spent over 7 years in the United States, she is bilingual (Japanese and English) and bicultural.

Experience

Financial Communications 

• Advised on a number of Japanese cross-border deals on either the bidder or target side, including Meiji Yasuda`s $5 billion acquisition of StanCorp., Nippon Steel’s investment in Vallourec Group, as well as domestic deals such as Sony, making Sony Financial Holdings a 100% owned subsidiary.
• Provided counsel for acquisitions of Japanese companies by foreign firms such as the Carlyle Group’s Japan investments as their PR advisor in Japan.

Shareholder Activism

• Has been the PR advisor to a number of Japanese companies facing activist situations over the last five years.
• High-profile engagements include advising Olympus Corporation on becoming the first major Japanese company in 2019 to invite a representative from an activist shareholder (ValueAct Capital) to its board, as well as counseling Fujifilm Corporation on its dealings with Carl Icahn in 2018 and 2019. Additionally, advised Toshiba Corporation in 2021 on its external positioning during a time when activist shareholders accounted for the top three shareholders of the company.

Corporate Reputation and Positioning 

• Led or co-led a number of complex reputation and positioning mandates for both Japanese and multinational companies including Japan market entry support.
• Industries so far include automotive, airline, heavy industry, energy, government agency, fintech, asset managers and conglomerates, among others.
• Lead PR advisor to the Carlyle Group in Japan.