A 290 billion yen ($1.9 billion) share sale by major Japanese banks marks Nintendo's move away from traditional cross-shareholding structures that have long defined corporate Japan.
MUFG Bank and the Bank of Kyoto will sell their stakes in the Super Mario maker as part of a strategic unwinding announced on Friday, February 27. The transaction totals approximately 290 billion yen at Friday's closing price, excluding any overallotment options.
Nintendo simultaneously revealed plans to spend up to 100 billion yen buying back as many as 14 million shares, creating a partial offset to the bank sales. The company's stock pared earlier gains but still closed nearly 3% higher following the announcement.
Resona Bank and mobile gaming company DeNA will also participate in the share sale, according to reports first published by Reuters.
MUFG Bank, Japan's largest lender, holds its Nintendo stake through a trust bank arrangement. As of September last year, the Bank of Kyoto maintained a 4.19% position in Nintendo while MUFG controlled 3.62%. Both institutions have implemented policies aimed at reducing cross-shareholdings as part of broader corporate governance reforms sweeping Japanese industry.
This transaction follows a similar move by Toyota Motor Corporation, which reportedly plans to unwind around $19 billion in strategic holdings involving banks and insurers. The parallel developments signal accelerating change in how Japan's corporate giants structure ownership relationships.
A previous Nintendo share sale in 2019 totaled approximately 71 billion yen, making today's announcement more than four times larger in scale. The increased magnitude reflects growing pressure from international investors for greater transparency and market-driven governance.
Kyoto Financial Group shares jumped 9% following news of its subsidiary's participation in the Nintendo transaction. Market response suggests investors view these unwinding moves as positive steps toward modernizing Japan's corporate market.
Nintendo has not commented publicly on specific details beyond its official announcement regarding both the bank sales and concurrent share buyback program.
