Domestic organized crime syndicates operate on the basis of intimidation.
Occasionally this will be delivered in the form of a direct physical threat, but more often than not it comes from the inclusion of a group’s crest (daimon) on business cards as well everyday items such as fans, handkerchiefs, towels, ashtrays, teacups, neckties and even calendars.
Hirofumi Kobayashi, a former member of the Yamaguchi-gumi crime syndicate, says the power of handing over a business card bearing a distinctive gang crest can’t be understated.