Sony Group Corp. (TYO: 6758) announced that it will invest approximately ¥68 billion (around USD 464 million) to acquire about 2.5% (16 million shares) of Japanese gaming and entertainment giant Bandai Namco Holdings (TYO: 7832), becoming one of its major minority shareholders and establishing a strategic partnership.
Bandai Namco is the owner of globally renowned IPs such as Gundam, Pac-Man, Tekken, and Elden Ring, and is also involved in arcade gaming, anime production, and film making. In recent years, global demand for Japanese anime has surged, becoming a key growth driver for Sony. In 2021, Sony acquired leading online anime streaming platform Crunchyroll and integrated it with Funimation, further expanding its global anime influence.
In a joint statement, Sony and Bandai Namco said they will work together to expand their fan base and strengthen engagement, especially in the rapidly growing anime market. The two companies plan to co-develop new animations, manga, and cross-media projects based on multiple IPs, aiming to deliver fresh and emotionally resonant (“Kando”) entertainment experiences to fans worldwide.
Industry analysts noted that Sony’s competitor Nintendo currently holds around 1.8% of Bandai Namco’s shares, while Sony has previously collaborated with Bandai Namco on popular works such as Mobile Suit Gundam SEED FREEDOM and Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba. This new stake acquisition is expected to strengthen Sony’s upstream IP portfolio and support Bandai Namco’s global expansion.
Beyond this deal, Sony already holds significant investments in major Japanese media and gaming companies, including 12% of Kadokawa, 14.09% of FromSoftware, 4.9% of Epic Games, 5% of Devolver Digital, and 4.98% of Bilibili. While Bandai Namco continues to grow its gaming business, it is also actively expanding into film production — most recently partnering with A24 and director Alex Garland to develop an Elden Ring movie. With this collaboration now in place, industry watchers expect deeper cooperation between the two companies across anime, gaming, and film, bringing fans more innovative and highly anticipated cross-media works.