Bit spurious citing research that it’s historical in all senses, in those times much was done on trust so it’s pretty obvious that fellow members of a highly moral society would possibly trust each other more when it came to credit, don’t you think? It wasn’t about access to those holding the purse strings, it was about a demonstrable moral fibre backed up by a social graph of the masonic brotherhood. That moral solidity was born out in that quote where it shows masonic managers are essentially a more conservative bunch, a safe pair of hands in that context. The world has changed an awful lot since 1902, no?

Keiretsu is about interconnections, if I remember my Japanese business culture 101 it is kwanshi (spelling?) that relates most to the above analogy, it’s trust basically. The way business is conducted on trust and ones honour rather than by proscriptive contractual discipline. You build an honourable reputation through excellence and thereafter conduct yourself in the service of your own or your employers good name.

In short, don’t become an Freemason to gain access to funding or people do it out of curiosity, a love for learning and to be part of an ancient society.