Kansai Ki-in
The Kansai Ki-in, i.e., Kansai Go Association, is an organizational body for the game of Go in Japan, which was founded by Hashimoto Utaro in 1950. Though it is not as large as its chief rival, the Nihon Ki-in, it also issues diplomas to strong players and oversees professionals as the Nihon Ki-in does.
World War II created great difficulties in traveling from the Osaka region to Tokyo for Nihon Ki-in events. The Nihon Ki-in created a western branch, but when a dispute over the Honinbo title arose in 1950, this branch declared its independence.
