East Wind was comprised of seven related companies in liquidation, six of which saw their last rites – final liquidators’ reports – posted to the Companies Office in December. There is marginally better news for the one East Wind company for which liquidators are still working through. The collapse of East Wind caused a minor diplomatic stir, as both the Japanese embassy in Wellington, and New Zealand’s in Tokyo, fielded complaints from angry investors. It was revealed the SFO had received a formal complaint about East Wind five years prior, but had elected to refer it to Immigration New Zealand (INZ). East Wind employee Yuko Hanyu was charged by the SFO with false accounting and theft by a person in a special relationship in 2022.

Source: New Zealand Herald January 08, 2026 04:24 UTC