The National Police Agency's 2007 white paper addresses the "fight against gangland activities designed to get funds." The white paper warns that a continuation of covert activities by gangs to raise money will damage the health of the Japanese economy and dispossess the whole nation of its interests. It is a strong call for all of society, including both the government and private sectors, to close ranks against gangsters.
Last year, some 28,400 gangsters were arrested. Of them, more than 30 percent were involved in stimulant drug sales, extortion, gambling and the selling of unauthorized tickets for municipally operated gambling such as horse races — traditional ways for them to raise money. But the white paper says that many gangsters are also intruding into ordinary business activities. By using their companies as a cover, many gangsters use violence or are engaged in illegal activities to acquire money, including manipulation of stock prices and insider trading in stocks.
These and other economic activities are supporting the nation's gangsters, whose numbers dropped from a peak of 180,000 in 1963 to about 80,000 today following police crackdowns in the 1990s.