Masafumi Miyamoto
Japanese businessman (born 1957)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Masafumi Miyamoto (宮本 雅史, Miyamoto Masafumi, born 1957) is a Japanese investor and businessman who founded the video game company Square. Miyamoto served as president of Square until 1991.
Masafumi Miyamoto | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1957 (age 68–69) |
| Alma mater | Waseda University |
| Occupations | Investor, businessman |
Biography
Miyamoto graduated from Waseda University in 1983, and began his professional career in the software division of Den-Yu-Sha, a company owned by his father, where he developed computer games. Miyamoto had teams of graphic designers, programmers, and professional writers working on game projects together.[1] Miyamoto recruited game developers demonstrated sufficient programming skills in a building similar to what would be known as internet cafes.[2] In 1986, Miyamoto spun Square out from Den-Yu-Sha to become an independent company with a focus on making games for the Famicom video game system. He stepped down as president of Square in 1991.[3]
Square Enix merger
During the discussion of the merger of Square and Enix in 2002, his approval of the merger was essential because of his major stake in Square.[4] Initially, the proposed share ratio was 1 Square share to 0.81 Enix shares, a proposal that Miyamoto opposed.[5] When the merger went through, 1 share of Square resulted in 0.85 shares of Enix.[6] Miyamoto made 5 million shares, or 9% of the company, available for purchase in the summer of 2002 but still retained 31.04% ownership.[3] As of March 31, 2018, he is the tenth-largest shareholder of Square Enix.[7] Since the beginning of 2025, Square Enix has been targeted, which has led to an increase in the company's share price.[8]