Japan Roundup: Technology Magnate Commits $120-Million to Aid Effort
April 5, 2011 | Read Time: 1 minute
Masayoshi Son, Japan’s richest person, said Sunday that he will donate about $120-million toward relief efforts in areas hard-hit by last month’s earthquake and tsunami, The Wall Street Journal reports.
Speaking live on an online video channel, Mr. Son also pledged all his future earnings as CEO of mobile-phone and Internet-service provider Softbank Corp. to earthquake relief. The 53-year-old mogul earned just under $1.3-million last year.
The donation is by far the largest by an individual to relief efforts in Japan. Mr. Son is rated the country’s richest individual by Forbes, with a net worth of $8.1-billion.
In other Japan news:
● A high-ranking Japanese official urged Sunday that Japan’s Red Cross speed up disbursement of the more than $1-billion it has raised since the March 11 quake, the Los Angeles Times writes.
The Red Cross has sent more than 200 teams to the disaster zone and organized thousands of volunteers but has yet to give any money directly to displaced people. Yukio Edano, Japan’s chief cabinet secretary, said the charity needs to streamline the process of determining who will get payments.
● Government agencies and watchdog groups in the United States are warning of the spread of online scams ostensibly raising money for Japan relief, says The Wall Street Journal.
Spam e-mails, appeals on social-media sites, and bogus charity Web sites have proliferated since the disaster, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and monitors such as the Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance, repeating a pattern seen after the Haiti and New Zealand earthquakes.
