Hiroshi Mikitani
Technology

Hiroshi Mikitani Net Worth

Hiroshi Mikitani, born on March 11, 1965 in Tokyo, Japan, is the founder and CEO of Rakuten, Japan's biggest e-commerce retailer. Over the years, Rakuten has made several investments, such as $300 million in ride-sharing app Lyft, $900 million in messaging service Viber, and $100 million in Pinterest.
Hiroshi Mikitani is a member of Technology

Age, Biography and Wiki

Birth Day March 11, 1965
Birth Place Tokyo, Japan, Japan
Age 59 YEARS OLD
Birth Sign Aries
Alma mater Hitotsubashi University Harvard University
Occupation Founder, CEO & Chairman, Rakuten, Inc. (1997-present)
Years active 1988–present
Spouse(s) Haruko Mikitani (m. 1993)
Children 2
Website Hiroshi Mikitani Twitter account Hiroshi Mikitani English Twitter account

💰 Net worth: $3.4 Billion (2024)

Hiroshi Mikitani's net worth is estimated to be $3.4 billion in 2024, making him one of the wealthiest individuals in Japan. As a prominent figure in the technology industry, Mikitani has played a significant role in shaping Japan's tech landscape. He is best known for founding and leading Rakuten Inc., a major e-commerce company based in Japan. Under his guidance, Rakuten has expanded into various sectors beyond e-commerce, including fintech, telecommunications, and digital content. Mikitani's entrepreneurial mindset and strategic vision have propelled him to great financial success, cementing his status as a prominent technology figure in Japan.

2009 $3.4 Billion
2010 $4.8 Billion
2011 $5.6 Billion
2012 $6.2 Billion
2013 $5.6 Billion
2014 $9.3 Billion
2015 $9.3 Billion
2016 $7.3 Billion
2017 $5.8 Billion
2018 $5.57 Billion

Biography/Timeline

1965

Hiroshi Mikitani (三木谷浩史, Mikitani Hiroshi) (born March 11, 1965) is a Japanese Billionaire businessman and the founder, chairman and CEO of Rakuten, Inc. He is also the President of Crimson Group, chairman of the football club Rakuten Vissel Kobe, chairman of Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, and a board member of Lyft. According to Bloomberg Businessweek, as of August 2017, Mikitani is worth $7.1 billion.

1972

His Father, Ryoichi Mikitani, was an Economist who was Japan's first Fulbright Scholar to the US and taught for two years at Yale University; during that time, from 1972 to 1974, the family lived in New Haven, Connecticut. His mother, Setsuko, went to elementary school in New York City, before returning to Kobe. After her graduation from Kobe University, she worked for a trading company. His sister Ikuko is a physician (MD in Osaka University). His brother Kenichi is a professor of biology at the University of Tokyo. His grandfather was a co-founder of Minolta.

1988

Mikitani worked at the Industrial Bank of Japan (now part of Mizuho Corporate Bank) from 1988 to 1996, with a break from 1991 to 1993 to attend Harvard. He left to start his own consulting group, called Crimson Group. Mikitani has stated that the destruction caused by the devastating 1995 Kobe earthquake made him realize he wanted to help revitalize Japan’s economy, leading to his resignation from banking and decision to launch his own venture.

1993

Mikitani and his wife Haruko have two children. They were married in 1993.

1995

In 1995, after an earthquake in Kobe caused significant damage so that the city could no longer maintain the Vissel Kobe football club, Mikitani was asked to take over operations of the team. He purchased the team later that year through his company Crimson Group. In 2014 the team was acquired by Rakuten.

1997

In 1996, Mikitani started looking at various Business Models, and decided to launch an online shopping mall. At the time, Netscape was around, Amazon.com had recently launched, and Google didn't yet exist. On February 7, 1997, Mikitani founded the e-commerce company MDM, Inc. with three co-founders and US$250,000 of their own money, launching the online marketplace Rakuten Ichiba in Japan on May 1, 1997. The company was renamed Rakuten, Inc. in 1999, and Mikitani took it public on the JASDAQ in 2000. In founding the company, Mikitani envisioned an online marketplace focusing on the exchange between buyers and sellers, as a Hybrid between eBay and Amazon.com. It started as a small online marketplace with 13 shops and 6 employees, and has since grown into "an e-commerce giant."

2001

Mikitani has been President of Rakuten since its founding, and in 2001 he also became chairman. Among his other titles are Chairman of Rakuten Travel, Chairman of Rakuten Vissel Kobe football club, Director of PriceMinister, Director (Chairman) of Rakuten Kobo, and Chairman, Representative Director and team owner of Rakuten Baseball. He was named chairman of the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra in 2011.

2004

Mikitani had joined Keidanren, the powerful Japanese Business federation, in 2004. In June 2011, in the aftermath of the Fukushima nuclear disaster, he quit the federation, announcing his decision via Twitter before sending in his formal letter of resignation, saying it was no longer the same organization he had joined, and he disagreed with its support for continued reliance on the nuclear industry for electricity, and its reluctance to carry out reforms that could help Japan compete internationally. He subsequently pondered setting up a rival body.

2010

Beginning in March 2010, Mikitani implemented a plan that he calls "Englishnization", making English the primary language of Rakuten within two years. While the plan was dismissed as "stupid" by Honda President Takanobu Ito in 2010, Mikitani believes that "English is not an advantage anymore – it is a requirement." He considers the Japanese company's fluency in English, with meetings and reporting done in English, to be a strong advantage for the company globally. In 2011, Mikitani's Englishnization initiative was featured in a Harvard Business Review case study.

2012

In 2012, Mikitani was awarded the Harvard Business School Alumni Achievement Award, one of the school's highest honors. He was also named to Prime Minister Shinzō Abe's Industrial Competitiveness Council.

2014

In 2014, Mikitani was awarded the rank of Chevalier of the National Order of the Legion of Honour by the French government.

2017

In 2017, Mikitani was awarded the Order of Merit of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. and the 2017 Spain-Japan Business Contribution Award by the Spanish Chamber of Commerce.

Some Hiroshi Mikitani images

About the author

Lisa Scholfield

As a Senior Writer at Famous Net Worth, I spearhead an exceptional team dedicated to uncovering and sharing the stories of pioneering individuals. My passion for unearthing untold narratives drives me to delve deep into the essence of each subject, bringing forth a unique blend of factual accuracy and narrative allure. In orchestrating the editorial workflow, I am deeply involved in every step—from initial research to the final touches of publishing, ensuring each biography not only informs but also engages and inspires our readership.