Toshiba scandal exposes Japan Inc's governance flaws

Tokyo

TOSHIBA'S billion-dollar accounting scandal has shone a light on a corporate culture in Japan still beset by collusion in its senior ranks, unquestioning employees and poor external controls, experts say.

The vast 140-year-old conglomerate was hammered this week by embarrassing revelations that top executives pressured underlings to inflate profits by about US$1.2 billion since the 2008 global financial crisis.