12 Japanese Firms to Push Investments in California

As part of an accelerated effort to “sell” California to businesses with money to spend, California officials have signed agreements with 12 Japanese financial institutions to promote Japanese business investment in the state, the state Commerce Department said Monday.

Under the “cooperation agreements” signed by nine of Japan’s largest banks and three leading trust and banking corporations during the last seven months, the financial institutions will serve as “initial communication links” between the Commerce Department and Japanese firms to help the companies explore investment opportunities and locate sites for factories and offices, said Jim Vaughn, director of the state Office of Business Development, which is part of the Commerce Department.

The agreements formalize an existing, informal process by which Japanese companies interested in starting a California operation use Japanese banks as advisers and intermediaries rather than approach the state on their own, Vaughn said.

“We felt, and the banks agreed, that there is a growing interest in information (about investing in California) but the banks didn’t have the research capability to provide that information,” Vaughn said. For example, a bank might have general statewide information but wouldn’t have detailed data on land costs in various parts of California, which the state can provide, he said.

In addition to such statistical data, the state Commerce Department can provide U.S. and foreign companies with site selection assistance, tax-exempt bond financing, and help with regulatory and permit process.

The agreements have already led to several “solid investment leads,” Vaughn said.