So, we get to do this rodeo again, don’t we? Yuji Naka was recently reported to have been arrested over an accusation of insider trading… Again. This time, it’s regarding the development of yet another mobile game that was also made by a third-party studio that was parallel to the company itself, the project in question being Final Fantasy VII: The First Soldier.
And yes, it may be a different verse, but it’s the same as the first. Yuji Naka essentially learned of the Final Fantasy VII spin-off battle royale game ahead of its public announcement. He and two other offenders learned about the partnership between Square Enix and Ateam back during his tenure at the company before the public announcement of The First Soldier in February 2021.
The Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office claims that Naka bought a total of 120,000 shares for around 144.7 million yen (US$1.05 million) with a former employee at Square Enix, Taisuke Sasaki, buying 91,000 shares for around 105 million yen (US$763,000), and his acquaintance purchasing 10,000 shares for around 11.8 million yen (US$85,000) on Ateam.
This was done with the knowledge that the company’s stock would rise after the game’s announcement. This is basically a big no-no in the financial industry as it constitutes a crime known as Insider Trading. And thus, we find ourselves repeating the same thing. Yuji Naka and Taisuke Sasaki were arrested on suspicion of the crime, with prosecutors claiming that the two men made hundreds of millions of yen in the deals.
The only differentiator now is that, with the Dragon Quest Tact case in tow, Yuji Naka and his criminal partners are now charged today with violating the Financial instruments and Exchange Act by the special investigation unit. So, that’s a thing. As for what happened to Final Fantasy VII: The First Soldier? Well, that game is set to shut down in January 2023. So… That’s a thing.
