About Us

Benito Yamazaki, CPA
Partner,
Audit, Accounting and Assurance
Indianapolis

Mr. Yamazaki earned his B.A. in accounting from the Instituto Tecnologico Autónomo de México. After working for two years with Pricewaterhouse in Mexico City, Mr. Yamazaki decided to enter into the Masters of Accounting program at the University of Southern California, where he graduated in 1998. Prior to joining HLS, Mr. Yamazaki worked at Deloitte for 10 years in the audit practice. Mr. Yamazaki joined HLS in January 2009, and was promoted to partner in October 2010. He is primarily responsible for managing audit and review engagements in our Midwest region. Mr. Yamazaki is also involved in our operations in Mexico. He is a Certified Public Accountant in the states of California, Indiana, and Illinois, and he is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. He enjoys spending time with his family, reading, and running.

Eri Ogura, CPA (U.S. and Japan)
Partner,
Audit, Accounting and Assurance
Los Angeles

Ms. Ogura earned her B.S. degree in business administration with a concentration in financial accounting from Kobe University in Japan and an M.B.A. from California State University, Northridge. Ms. Ogura joined Hotta Liesenberg Saito LLP (HLS) in January 2009. Prior to HLS, she was a manager in the assurance department of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. Ms. Ogura has more than 14 years of experience in auditing, business advisory, and IPO assistance in both Japan and the U.S. While working at the Japanese Practice Group of PwC, she gained extensive experience in financial statement audits of Japanese holding companies and U.S. subsidiaries subject to SEC and European reporting regulations and J-Sox requirements. Ms. Ogura is a Certified Public Accountant licensed in the state of California. She is also a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Japanese Institute of Certified Public Accountants. In her spare time, she enjoys cooking, gardening, watching Lakers games, and wine tasting.

 

 

Go Matsumoto, CPA
Partner,
Total Service Group
New York

Go Matsumoto graduated from Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, Georgia, with a B.B.A. degree in accounting. He began his career at the Los Angeles office of HLS in 1998. Mr. Matsumoto served as a manager working with a variety of U.S. subsidiaries of Japanese clients in various industries and gained diversified experience with emphasis on auditing and accounting services. In 2005, Mr. Matsumoto joined HLS Tokyo office and had mainly provided accounting and assurance, financial due diligence, valuation, and consultation services to Japanese subsidiaries of multi-national foreign corporations as well as domestic corporations. In 2015, he returned to the U.S. and joined the New York office. He is currently responsible for managing and developing the Total Service Group (TSG) which provides accounting and tax advisory services to small and medium sized corporate clients. Mr. Matsumoto is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Outside of work, he enjoys reading, playing golf, and hiking in national and state parks with his family.

Hirofumi Kashiwai, CPA
Senior Manager,
Tax
Los Angeles

Mr. Kashiwai earned his B.S. degree in economics from the University of Hyogo in Japan. In 2001, he started his accounting career at a local firm in California that specializes in business process outsourcing services. Two years later, he joined the tax department of KPMG and worked there for six years. His client base consisted primary of Japanese subsidiaries in the U.S., and his experience included U.S. tax compliance and advisory services for corporations and expatriates. In 2009, Mr. Kashiwai joined HLS and provided individual tax return compliance and advisory services. In 2014, he moved to Deloitte and gained extensive experience in the same field. He rejoined HLS in 2017 where he provides large-firm- quality tax services with personal attention to clients. He is a Certified Public Accountant, licensed in California. He is also an Enrolled Agent to practice before the IRS.

 

 

Kazumasa Fujita, CPA
Partner,
Tax & Tax Services
Indianapolis

Mr. Fujita gained 12 years of corporate tax experience at Arthur Andersen and Deloitte prior to joining HLS as senior manager in April 2012. Throughout his Big Four career, he provided corporate tax services primarily to Japanese subsidiaries in the United States. His client base includes diverse industries such as high tech, real estate, manufacturing, venture capital, entertainment, and distribution. He is specialized in federal and multistate corporate income taxation including inbound and outbound cross border tax issues. In addition, he gained strong experience in financial accounting for income taxes (ASC 740). He is a Certified Public Accountant licensed in the state of California and Indiana.

 

 

Ken Kasuyama, CPA
Partner
Audit, Quality Control
Los Angeles

Mr. Kasuyama earned his B.S. degree in accounting from California State University, Los Angeles and went to work for a local public accounting firm in 1973. In 1983, this firm was acquired by Deloitte and became the largest Japanese practice in the United States. Mr. Kasuyama became a director and served as the lead client service provider on a variety of large and mid-sized audit clients in various businesses. Mr. Kasuyama joined HLS in 2004 to become the partner for quality control. With his extensive audit and quality control experience, Mr. Kasuyama has enhanced the quality of the firm’s audit and review services. His responsibilities within HLS include providing the final technical review of financial statements, internal monitoring, and in-house training. Mr. Kasuyama is a Certified Public Accountant licensed in the state of California. He is also a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accounting and the California Society of Certified Public Accountants.

Kevin O’Connell, CPA, JD
Executive Advisor,
Tax & Tax Services
Indianapolis

Kevin O’Connell graduated from the University of Cincinnati with a major in accounting and received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Dayton School of Law. He was a partner in the tax practice of Deloitte where he specialized in providing tax consulting services for multinational organizations. In 1984, he began working with his first foreign-owned client, an automotive supplier to Honda in Marysville, Ohio. As the Japanese tax practice grew he began serving electronics, steel, and forging companies in Cleveland in addition to several Honda suppliers in Columbus, Ohio. Mr. O’Connell has over 20 years of experience negotiating with field agents, appeals officers, and counsel in settling income tax matters. In 2001, he joined Somerset CPAs, a BDO Alliance USA firm. He is a member of the Indiana CPA Society, Japan America Society of Indiana, and the American Institute of CPAs Tax Section. He is a member of the Ohio Bar and is admitted to practice before the United States Tax Court. He is also a CPA licensed to practice in Indiana and Ohio.

 

 

Koji Teruya, CPA
Senior Manager,
Tax & Tax Services
Los Angeles

Koji Teruya earned his M.B.A. and M.S. in taxation from Baruch College in New York. In 1989, Mr. Teruya joined the tax department of Coopers & Lybrand. At the firm, his client base consisted primarily of Japanese subsidiaries in the United States. His experience involved U.S. tax compliance and advisory services for corporations as well as expatriates assigned to their U.S. subsidiaries. In 1996, Mr. Teruya formed his owned company specializing in providing tax compliance and advisory services to small and midsized companies. Through his practice, he gained extensive experience in assisting newly formed companies. In 2009, he joined HLS, where he provides large-firm- quality tax services with personal attention to clients. Mr. Teruya is a Certified Public Accountant licensed in the state of Maryland. In his spare time, Mr. Teruya enjoys recreational golf and skiing.

 

 

Masayasu Yamanoi, CPA
Senior Manager,
Total Service Group
Los Angeles

Mr. Masayasu Yamanoi earned his B.S. degree in business administration, specializing in accounting, from California State University, Long Beach. He joined Hotta Liesenberg Saito LLP (“HLS”) in March 1999. He engaged in a wide variety of engagements and gained experience in the areas of accounting, assurance, tax, and consultations since he joined the firm as a professional accountant. Mr. Yamanoi was promoted to manager in 2003 and started to focus on tax compliance, including local tax and advisory services such as accounting and tax consultation, correspondence with tax authorities, and accounting workflow and system setup assistance for small and midsized companies. Mr. Yamanoi is a Certified Public Accountant licensed in the state of California. He is also a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

 

 

Miho Bakstad, CPA
Senior Manager,
Accounting and Assurance
Los Angeles

Miho Bakstad earned her B.S. degree in accounting from California State University, Long Beach. She is a Certified Public Accountant, licensed in the state of California, with more than 10 years of audit experience. Prior to joining HLS, Ms. Bakstad worked with Deloitte as the audit manager in its audit practice where she served various subsidiaries of Japanese public companies in various industries. She joined HLS in 2012, and serves as the senior audit manager for a variety of companies in various industries including manufacturing, retail, real estate, aviation, and logistics. She is also involved in our in-house training program. Ms. Bakstad is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. She enjoys visiting national parks with her family, hosting home parties and watching sports games.

 

 

Norihiko Tokeshi, CPA
Partner

Mr. Tokeshi graduated from the University of Washington with B.A. degree in business administration in 1994 and joined the Los Angeles office of Hotta Liesenberg Saito LLP (HLS) in the following year. Over the next several years, he provided services to clients in the areas of accounting, audit, tax, management advisory, and accounting systems. When HLS made the decision to open its Tokyo office, Mr. Tokeshi was the natural choice to become the director of operations. He started several service lines including global advisory service and was also actively involved with expanding HLS to India. Currently, he has been concentrating in global expansion services for Japanese multinational companies and Japan entry service for foreign multinational companies. Outside of the office, Mr. Tokeshi enjoys all sports, especially camping, sailing, and playing golf.

 

 

Shunsuke Saito, CPA
Managing Partner
New York

Mr. Saito graduated from the University of Southern California and went to work at Deloitte. Mr. Saito joined HLS in 1991. He performed audits and reviews of international companies of various industries and sizes. In addition to the traditional services of audit and review engagements, he also performed a variety of business advisory services for clients. These services include operational audits, reorganization assistance, merger and acquisitions, litigation support, and the representation of clients before government agencies. His experience and technical expertise in providing both accounting and advisory services have helped many companies add significant value to their organizations.

 

 

Tadashi Tokutake, CPA
Partner,
Total Service Group
Los Angeles

Mr. Tokutake earned his B.S. degree in accounting from San Diego State University and went to work for a local public accounting firm specializing in serving subsidiaries of Japanese companies. He joined HLS in 1995 and has built a distinguished record of service with many of the firm’s major clients. Mr. Tokutake became a partner in 2007. Along with supervising audit and assurance services in the Los Angeles office, he plays an important role in educating the firm’s younger professionals and overseeing relationships with the clients. Mr. Tokutake is a Certified Public Accountant licensed in the State of California. He is also a member of American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the California Society of Certified Public Accountants. In his free time, he enjoys playing golf and tennis.

 

 

Yoko Tomotake, CPA
Partner,
Tax
Los Angeles

Ms. Tomotake earned her B.S. degree in business administration, specializing in accounting, from California State University, Los Angeles. Since joining HLS in 1996, she has engaged in a wide variety of work in assurance tax and consulting services to clients in various industries, including manufacturing, retail, wholesale, and entertainment. She currently focuses on tax services as a partner and continues to provide tax compliance and consulting services. She has extensive experience in federal and multistate corporate income taxation, individual taxation for expatriates, and income tax provision. She is also experienced in conducting IRS and various state and local tax audits. She is a Certified Public Accountant in the state of California and also a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Outside of work, she actively volunteers at her children’s school.

 

 

Yuji Takana
Partner,
Transfer Pricing Services
Los Angeles

Yuji Takana has over 15 years of experience as a transfer pricing professional serving Japanese and U.S. corporations. He began his transfer pricing career at KPMG LLP and joined HLS in 2012. He is currently responsible for overseeing transfer pricing services in Tokyo, the U.S., and India offices. He has transfer pricing services in various industries, including retail, IT, automobile, and pharmaceutical. He provides transfer pricing planning advice, including the development and implementation of policy. He has experience in assisting clients in bilateral advance pricing agreements between the U.S. and Japan and the U.S. and Canada. He graduated from Tufts University and the School of International Relations and Public Affairs at Columbia University. In his free time, he enjoys running.

 

 

Andrés Carrasco Ixta
Senior Manager

Andrés Carrasco Ixta graduated from the Faculty of Accounting and Administration of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) with an accounting degree. For the past 15 years, he has been involved in financial auditing with a specialization in the manufacturing, construction, automotive, and pharmaceutical industries. He is currently senior manager of HLS Mexico, auditing and advising multinational companies. He started his profession as an auditor in Deloitte for November 2002, and was promoted to manager in October 2009 and to senior manager in September 2014. He joined HLS Global as senior manager in October 2014.

 

 

Atsushi Funakubo
Partner in charge of Japan Desk

Atsushi Funakubo is a Mexican certified public accountant originally from Japan. He has audited and advised multinational companies for more than 20 years. Currently, he is the partner in charge of the Japan Desk of HLS Mexico, while also serving as statutory examiner for many institutions, including the Liceo Mexicano Japonés AC, his Alma Matter and an important bridge between Mexican and Japanese cultures. His extensive experience, mastery of three languages (Spanish, English, and Japanese), and his knowledge of different cultures make him a rare professional who can offer clients unique perspectives. He started his career as an auditor for Deloitte and played a key role in the opening of Deloitte’s Reynosa office. He was promoted to partner in 2006. Mr. Funakubo joined the HLS Global group in 2010, in search of new professional goals. He holds a degree in public accounting from the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México.

 

 

Elizabeth Baltazar
Senior Manager

Elizabeth Baltazar was born in Mexico City and earned her BA in accounting from Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM). For the past 25 years, she mainly audited major domestic and international companies. She is currently a senior manager of HLS Mexico. She started her professional career as an auditor for Deloitte, where she focused on Japanese companies. She worked there for 11 years and was promoted to manager in 2001. In 2004, she accepted an accounting manager position for one of the most successful automotive repair chains in Mexico (Grupo RAMA), where she worked for 5 years. In 2015, she joined the HLS Global group to further her professional goals.

 

 

 

Jorge Gutiérrez
Managing Partner

Jorge Gutiérrez is a certified public accountant who earned his MBA from Universidad Anáhuac México. He was appointed as general manager of HLS Mexico when the company was founded and made extensive contributions to creating a strong foundation for the firm. He has extensive experience in accounting and finance as well as international business. Mr. Gutiérrez has advised and served both multinational and Mexican companies for the past 20 years, including many Japanese companies in Mexico. Jorge started his career at Deloitte Mexico and worked there for 10 years, primarily serving major Japanese companies from a variety of industries. He has also been a member of the Colegio de Contadores Públicos de México since 1997.

 

 

Mayumi Yamamoto
Partner

After graduating with an accounting degree from Escuela Bancaria y Comercial, Mayumi Yamamoto started her professional career as an auditor in Deloitte Mexico, where she worked for 10 years. She has audited and consulted multinational companies for 18 years and has worked mainly in the manufacturing, service, and construction industries. Through an overseas program offered by Deloitte Mexico, she worked in the Deloitte New York office for 2 years. This experience gave her the opportunity to improve her English and gain a better understanding of American culture. Ms. Yamamoto joined HLS Global group in October 2011 and was promoted to partner in 2015. Her goal is to work collaboratively with the company to promote growth and enhance market positioning through the effective utilization of resources and the application of best practices.

 

 

Taiei Ekawa
Japanese Business Consultant – Irapuato

Mr. Ekawa earned his B.S. and master’s degree in accounting from Suffolk University and joined Hotta Liesenberg Saito LLP after graduation as an auditor in the New York office. After gaining audit experience in various industries including manufacturing, logistics, and leasing, he transferred to Mexico in 2017 to support more Japanese Clients in the Irapuato office. Mr. Ekawa has lived in Japan, the U.S., and China, giving him a vast knowledge of different cultures. He is fluent in Japanese, English, and Chinese and is currently learning Spanish for his fourth language.

 

 

Takuya Okamoto
Japanese Business Director - Aguascalientes

Mr. Okamoto joined HLS Global group and established the Aguascalientes branch of HLS Mexico in October 2016. He is a member of the Japanese Institute of Certified Public Accountants. He worked for Deloitte for more than 10 years in Japan. He also has experience working for Ernst & Young Hua Ming LLP (Ernst & Young Shanghai) in China. Mr. Okamoto served as auditor- in-charge and as a tax professional in various industries in Japan. In addition to providing audit and quarterly review services, he managed implementation projects and the documentation of internal controls on J-SOX for automotive, manufacturing, wholesale, retail, and trading companies. Mr. Okamoto also served as the coordinator of audit subsidiaries for Japanese companies in China. He provided consulting services for accounting, tax, and internal controls for automotive, manufacturing, construction, pharmaceutical, retail, and trading companies. He also provided reclassification services for companies transitioning from Chinese GAAP to IFRS.

 

 

Jyoti Kukreja
Director

Ms. Jyoti qualified to become a member of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India in 2006 and worked for Maruti Suzuki and Casio India. In 2012, Ms. Jyoti co-founded SJM Advisors Private Limited as specialist firm in Foreign Direct Investment practice and provided services to clients in the areas relating to Company Law, Securities Laws, Inbound Investment, Legal Due Diligence, Legal Compliance Management, Joint Ventures, Foreign Collaborations,  Technology Transfer, Mergers and Acquisitions and Labour Laws. Presently, Ms. Jyoti is responsible for operations and human resource management of the firm. She is also responsible for the service delivery and maintaining the firm’s commitment to high quality service to its proud clients. She is also an independent board member of a few Japanese and Taiwan based companies in India. During her leisure time, Ms. Jyoti enjoys travelling, reading and watching movies.

 

 

Manjul Agrawal
General Manager,
Global Advisory Services / India Director

Manjul Agrawal earned his B.S. degree in computer engineering technology from the University of Houston, Texas. Originally from India, Mr. Agrawal has been living and working in Japan since 2001. In addition to the entrepreneurial experience gained from starting his own trading and consulting company in India, he also developed technical expertise in a variety of industries. During his time at Broadcom Corporation, Mr. Agrawal gained valuable large account management experience in the areas of technology selling and product marketing. Mr. Agrawal joined the HLS Global Tokyo office in January 2015, and established the Global Advisory Services division. In his capacity as India Director, he is focused on driving business growth for our India practice. He is also responsible for global digital marketing initiatives for the firm. Outside of the office, Mr. Agrawal spends his time running around his two beautiful daughters and is a self-proclaimed movie buff. He also enjoys watching all sports and playing golf.

 

 

Manu Srivastava
Director

Mr. Manu qualified to become member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India in 2007 and joined KPMG, New Delhi office the same year. Over the course of his career, he worked with several Indian and multinational clients from a wide variety of industries. In 2012, Mr. Manu co-founded SJM Advisors Private Limited as specialist firm in Foreign Direct Investment practice and provided services to clients in the areas of India entry, audit, valuation, financial due-diligence, international taxation including transfer pricing and management consulting. Presently, Mr. Manu is responsible for strategic growth initiatives and its implementation besides managing the firm’s daily business. He is also responsible for service delivery and maintaining the firm’s commitment to high quality service to its proud clients. He is an independent board member of a few UK and Taiwan based companies in India. Mr. Manu played professional cricket at school and university level and still enjoys it during his leisure time.

 

 

Megumi Himura
Manager,
Client Service & Japan Desk

Ms. Himura has worked in several South East Asian countries after having worked in her native country Japan. During this period, she assisted many clients in manufacturing, chemical and service industries. Apart from her management degree, she has also pursued further studies in law management. Ms. Himura is deeply aware of cultural diversity, and aspires to be a facilitator to minimize various cultural divides with her interpersonal communication skills. She has also developed extensive experience in identifying prospects by researching on clients thoroughly to recognize what their needs. In her spare time, she enjoys travelling, cooking and watching movies

 

 

Norihiko Tokeshi CPA
Managing Director

Mr. Tokeshi graduated from the University of Washington with B.A. degree in business administration in 1994 and joined the Los Angeles office of Hotta Liesenberg Saito LLP (HLS) in the following year. Over the next several years, he provided services to clients in the areas of accounting, audit, tax, management advisory, and accounting systems. When HLS made the decision to open its Tokyo office, Mr. Tokeshi was the natural choice to become the director of operations. He started several service lines including global advisory service and was also actively involved with expanding HLS to India. Currently, he has been concentrating in global expansion services for Japanese multinational companies and Japan entry service for foreign multinational companies. Outside of the office, Mr. Tokeshi enjoys all sports, especially camping, sailing, and playing golf.

 

 

R.K. Srivastava
Director,
Railway Sector

Mr. Srivastava has an educational background in science, engineering and law, and retired after 38 years of successful service as the Senior Section Research Engineer from Signal & Telecom Directorate of the Research Design and Standards Organization (RDSO), a research arm of the Indian Railways based in Lucknow. Mr. Srivastava is experienced in various kind of technical testing (including climatic testing), development of signaling and telecommunication systems, vendor development and approval process at the Signal Directorate of RDSO. Over a period of 4 decades of working with RDSO, he has built excellent relationships with various the Heads of Departments, Senior Officials and other colleagues from RDSO, Zonal Railways and Railway Board. Presently, Mr. Srivastava is building the Indian Railway Advisory Practice at HLS India and helping several Indian and multinational railway companies in setting up their necessary infrastructure and getting the approval of their products used in Indian Railways as per RDSO norms. He has been awarded the certificate of appreciation and best performer on several occasions from the Director General and the Senior Executive Director of RDSO. During his leisure time, Mr. Srivastava enjoys spending time with his family, reading and watching television.

 

 

Takamichi Yanai, Japanese Lawyer; Toranomon Chuo Law Firm
Associate Partner

Mr. Yanai graduated from Waseda University in 1994 and joined Toranomon Chuo Law Firm in Tokyo in 2000. He has practiced Japanese corporate law for over 15 years, and dealt with many dispute resolutions through negotiations and by means of compulsory execution and temporary injunctions. Since July 2016, he has engaged with the Japanese Ministry of Justice and started living in India to survey the Indian Judicial systems, and also to study the situation of Japanese companies doing business in India. He has developed a comprehensive understanding of Indian laws and many legal problems that Japanese companies face. Using this experience and skills, Mr. Yanai has now started to base his activity with HLS India.