According to the list of world billionaires updated by Forbes as of May 22, 2026, the 5 richest people in Japan currently hold huge assets, ranging from 4 - 80.2 billion USD.
Investment King" Masayoshi Son leads the rankings
Billionaire Masayoshi Son - CEO of SoftBank - excellently usurped the position of the richest person in Japan. Data from Forbes (May 22, 2026) recorded that Mr. Son's assets increased sharply by 19 billion USD, reaching 80.2 billion USD, helping him break through to 26th position in the list of the richest people on the planet.
This rapid growth is associated with the strong recovery of SoftBank Group. The investment giant founded by him has just recorded a net profit of up to 20.5 billion USD on total revenue of 37 billion USD in just 9 months (as of December 31, 2025).
Chasing the knot: Uniqlo owner and technology "giants
Ranked second is billionaire Tadashi Yanai and his family with assets reaching 65.8 billion USD (an increase of 597 million USD compared to the previous period), holding the 30th position globally. Mr. Yanai is the helmsman of the fashion retail empire Fast Retailing - the parent company of the famous Uniqlo chain listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
Third place belongs to billionaire Takemitsu Takizaki with assets reaching 23.7 billion USD, an increase of 1.8 billion USD. He is currently ranked 112th in the super-rich world rankings. Mr. Takizaki is the founder of Keyence, a "money-making" business specializing in supplying sensors and electronic components for global factory automation systems.
Fluctuations at the bottom of the list
In fourth place is Mr. Yasumitsu Shigeta. In this update, his assets were slightly "evaporated" by 15 million USD, pushing him down to 684th in the world. Mr. Shigeta is currently Chairman of Hikari Tsushin - a Tokyo-based company specializing in distributing mobile phones and telecommunications services to major network operators in Japan.
Closing the top 5 is Mr. Takao Yasuda with assets anchored at the threshold of 4 billion USD, slightly down 27 million USD compared to before, ranking 900th on the planet. In 1980, Mr. Yasuda was the one who laid the foundation for today's Pan Pacific International Holdings by establishing the iconic Don Quijote discount retail chain.
