Metaplanet increases Capital Research voting stake to 11.11%

Capital Research and Management’s voting stake in Metaplanet reached 11.11% as of October 16, according to an investor report. The company disclosed on October 23 that the investment adviser holds 143,301,084 shares, up from 125,455,820 shares (a 9.32% stake) reported on September 8.

The increase in ownership percentage is attributed to both a larger holding and a share buyback program. On October 14, Metaplanet completed a repurchase of 73,981,400 ordinary shares at ¥261 each, totaling ¥19.309 billion via the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s ToSTNeT-3 system. This buyback reduced the total number of voting rights, thereby increasing the relative percentage held by Capital Research.

In a separate strategic move, Metaplanet has expanded into the United States to issue preferred stock, a maneuver intended to access capital pools that were unavailable to the company in Japan.