How much has Japan’s wealthiest 50 people increased since the beginning of the year?

The rebound in the stock market contributed to the combined wealth of Japan’s 50 richest people rising by more than 10% to $192 billion since the beginning of this year 2023.

According to Forbes, the conditions of more than half of Japan’s rich list improved compared to last year, with the wealthiest five remaining unchanged.

Retail mogul Tadashi Yanai was more than profitable this year, adding $11.8 billion to his position as Japan’s richest person, as high sales at Fast Retailing, the parent company of the Uniqlo clothing chain, raised his wealth by 50% to $35.4 billion.

Takimitsu Takizaki, founder of sensor manufacturer Keyence, retained second place for the second consecutive year with a $1 billion net worth increase of $ 22.6 billion.

Masayoshi Son remained third, although his wealth fell slightly to $20.9 billion due to a decline in investment in SoftBank Group, which posted a loss of $7.3 billion for the fiscal year ended March 2023.

Takahisa Takahara’s wealth also rose by $1.1 billion to $7.5 billion as shares of his personal care products company Unicharm, founded by his late father, jumped 22% due to increased sales.

Yoshiaki Yoshida, founder of the health food and cosmetics company DHC, rose more than 50% to $1.55 billion. Large financial services company Oryx had acquired the company in January worth $2.4 billion.

Three new names appeared on this year’s list, the first being Kenzo Tsujimoto ($1.2 billion) KAPCOM, which founded and operates the video game company CAPCOM and owns the Kenzo Estate Factory in California, and Fomio Canico ($1.1 billion) Daiei Kankyo, founding partner and president of the Daiei Kankyo waste management company, and the Ito Brothers ($4.7 billion) who inherited the large retail company 7-Eleven from their father Masatoshi Ito, who died in March at the age of 98.

Not everyone was lucky on this year’s list, with some seeing their wealth drop, such as Hiroshi Mikitani, founder of e-commerce firm Rakuten, which listed the company’s e-lending branch Rakuten Bank, but continued to suffer losses due to investments in mobile phone businesses.

However, Mikitani’s wealth declined by 18%, the largest percentage, to $3.6 billion and six places fell to 13th place.

Three billionaires, Masayuki Ishihara, who derives his wealth from a stake in Heiwa, returned to the list this year; Takanuri Nakamura, Founder of the cloud software company Rakus; Yoshiko Shinohara, honorary head of recruitment firm Persol Holdings, who reappeared after a four-year absence.

The minimum net worth required to enter the list rose to $965 million from $925 million last year.