Rakuten
Company History
Rakuten History: Founding, Growth & Key Milestones
Founded 1997 in Tokyo, Japan
When was Rakuten founded?
Rakuten was founded in 1997 in Tokyo, Japan by Hiroshi Mikitani, making it 29 years old.
- Founded
- 1997
- Founding place
- Tokyo, Japan
- Founders
- Hiroshi Mikitani
- Headquarters today
- Tokyo, Japan
- Milestones documented
- 12 (1997–2026)
- Current CEO
- Hiroshi Mikitani
- Acquisitions
- 3
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1997 | MDM, Inc. (Rakuten) Founded by Hiroshi Mikitani in Tokyo |
| 2000 | Initial Public Offering on JASDAQ |
| 2004 | Launch of Professional Baseball Team (Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles) |
| 2005 | Entry into FinTech with Rakuten Card & Bank Acquisitions |
| 2010 | Pioneered 'Englishnization' Corporate Language Mandate |
| 2010 | Buy.com Acquired |
| 2011 | Acquired Kobo Inc. |
| 2014 | Viber and Ebates Acquired |
| 2020 | Commercial Launch of Rakuten Mobile Open RAN Network |
| 2024 | Rollout of Platinum Band (700 MHz) & Rakuten Symphony Expansion |
| 2025 | FY2025 Revenue Reaches ¥2.50 Trillion |
| 2026 | First Quarterly Net Profit Since 2020 and Fintech Reorganization |
- Where was Rakuten founded?
- Rakuten was founded in Tokyo, Japan in 1997.
- Who founded Rakuten?
- Rakuten was founded by Hiroshi Mikitani.
- When did Rakuten start?
- Rakuten was founded in 1997.
- How old is Rakuten?
- Rakuten is 29 years old as of 2026.
Founding Story
Hiroshi Mikitani left the Industrial Bank of Japan after the 1995 Great Hanshin earthquake in his hometown of Kobe and founded MDM, Inc. in February 1997. Rakuten Ichiba opened that May with 13 shops. Instead of selling goods itself, the site let small Japanese merchants build and run their own online stores, a model that still defines Ichiba. The company renamed itself Rakuten in 1999 and listed on JASDAQ in 2000.
Founders
Hiroshi Mikitani
Hiroshi Mikitani founded Rakuten in 1997 after leaving the Industrial Bank of Japan, and has led it as chairman and CEO since. He built Rakuten Ichiba as a merchant-run marketplace, expanded into credit cards, banking and brokerage in the 2000s, made English the company's official internal language in 2010, and in 2018 committed Rakuten to building Japan's fourth mobile network on cloud-native Open RAN technology. Hiroshi Mikitani was born in 1965 in Kobe.
Key Milestones
MDM, Inc. (Rakuten) Founded by Hiroshi Mikitani in Tokyo
Launched Rakuten Ichiba online shopping mall with 13 merchants and 5 employees.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgInitial Public Offering on JASDAQ
Listed publicly in Tokyo, fueling rapid e-commerce and digital service expansion.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgLaunch of Professional Baseball Team (Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles)
Became the first new NPB baseball franchise in 50 years, establishing national brand trust.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgEntry into FinTech with Rakuten Card & Bank Acquisitions
Acquired credit card and banking operations, creating the financial engine of the Rakuten Ecosystem.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgPioneered 'Englishnization' Corporate Language Mandate
Made English the official internal working language of Rakuten, attracting global engineering talent.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgBuy.com Acquired
Rakuten bought the US online retailer Buy.com in 2010 for about $250 million.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgViber and Ebates Acquired
Rakuten bought the messaging app Viber for about $900 million and the cashback site Ebates for about $1 billion in 2014.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgCommercial Launch of Rakuten Mobile Open RAN Network
Launched the world's first fully virtualized cloud-native 4G/5G mobile telecommunications network.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgRollout of Platinum Band (700 MHz) & Rakuten Symphony Expansion
Commercialized sub-1 GHz frequencies in Japan and expanded global Open RAN software exports.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgFY2025 Revenue Reaches ¥2.50 Trillion
All three segments grew, lifting revenue 9.5% to ~$16.7 billion (¥2,496.6 billion).
Source: global.rakuten.comFirst Quarterly Net Profit Since 2020 and Fintech Reorganization
Q2 2026 net income of ~$182 million (¥27.2 billion) on record revenue of ~$4.46 billion (¥665.5 billion); Rakuten Card and Rakuten Securities Holdings move under a new Rakuten Bank group in October 2026.
Source: paymentnavi.comMajor Acquisitions
Ebates (Rakuten Rewards)
2014Acquired leading US cash-back shopping portal to expand international e-commerce presence.
Kobo Inc.
2011Acquired Canadian digital e-reader and e-book platform to compete with Amazon Kindle.
Viber Media
2014Acquired global VoIP and messaging application with hundreds of millions of users.
Keep researching Rakuten
Rakuten Company History FAQ
What are the major historical milestones in the corporate history of Rakuten Group, Inc.?
Key milestones include the 1997 founding and Ichiba launch with 13 shops, the 2000 IPO, fintech expansion in the 2000s, the Kobo (2011) and Viber and Ebates (2014) acquisitions, Rakuten Mobile's 2020 launch, the 2023 Rakuten Bank IPO, FY2025 revenue of ~$16.8 billion (¥2.50 trillion), and the Q2 2026 return to quarterly profit.
How did the launch of Rakuten Ichiba in May 1997 transform Japanese retail?
When Japanese traditional retail was dominated by large department store chains, Rakuten Ichiba allowed small family-owned businesses, regional confectionery makers, and artisans across Japan to sell directly to consumers nationwide via the internet, sparking a multi-decade e-commerce boom.
How did Rakuten create the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles professional baseball team in 2004?
In 2004, Rakuten was awarded a new Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) franchise, creating the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles in Sendai, the first new Japanese professional baseball team in 50 years, which won the Japan Series Championship in 2013 and transformed Rakuten into a beloved national household name.
How did Rakuten expand into global sports sponsorships with FC Barcelona and Golden State Warriors?
In 2016 Rakuten agreed a multi-year main shirt sponsorship with FC Barcelona starting in the 2017-18 season and signed a jersey patch deal with the NBA's Golden State Warriors, raising its global brand profile.
How did Rakuten build the world's first cloud-native Open RAN mobile network in 2020?
Defying conventional telecommunications wisdom, Rakuten launched Rakuten Mobile in April 2020, utilizing fully virtualized Open RAN software on standard commercial Intel servers rather than legacy proprietary cellular hardware, proving mobile networks could be run purely in the cloud.
Why did the company officially rename itself from Rakuten, Inc. to Rakuten Group, Inc. in 2021?
In April 2021, the company changed its official corporate name to 'Rakuten Group, Inc.' to reflect its comprehensive multinational corporate identity encompassing internet services, fintech, mobile telecommunications, media, and enterprise software.
Why are Rakuten Points central to Rakuten's history?
Rakuten Points started as an Ichiba loyalty reward and grew into a currency usable across Rakuten services and many partner stores, such as FamilyMart through SPU, tying the group's businesses together.
What is Rakuten Group's strategic vision for the next decade of technology and society?
Rakuten's future vision centers on harnessing generative artificial intelligence, providing direct-to-satellite ubiquitous mobile connectivity with AST SpaceMobile, exporting Open RAN telecom cloud software worldwide via Rakuten Symphony, and empowering global society through technology.
When and where was Rakuten founded?
Rakuten was founded in February 1997 in Tokyo, Japan, by entrepreneur Hiroshi Mikitani and a small team of four employees, initially incorporated as MDM, Inc. before renaming to Rakuten, Inc. in 1999.
What was the concept behind Rakuten Ichiba at launch in 1997?
Launched on May 1, 1997, Rakuten Ichiba ("Rakuten Marketplace") began with just 13 merchant shops and 6 employees, offering an online shopping mall where independent small businesses could customize their storefronts and interact directly with consumers.
When did Rakuten go public?
Rakuten completed its initial public offering on the JASDAQ market in Tokyo in April 2000, raising capital to survive the dot-com bubble crash and fund aggressive domestic acquisitions.
What was Rakuten’s famous "Englishnization" corporate policy?
In 2010, CEO Hiroshi Mikitani mandated that English become the official internal corporate language of Rakuten, requiring thousands of Japanese employees to achieve English fluency to recruit top global engineering talent and expand internationally.
When did Rakuten expand into the United States with Ebates?
In September 2014, Rakuten acquired leading US cash-back shopping portal Ebates for $1.0 billion, which it subsequently rebranded as Rakuten Americas to anchor its digital rewards and cashback footprint in North America.
What was the landmark launch of Rakuten Mobile in 2020?
In April 2020, Rakuten launched Rakuten Mobile as Japan’s fourth national mobile network operator (MNO), constructing the world’s first fully virtualized, cloud-native Open RAN mobile telecommunications network.
What is Rakuten Symphony?
In 2021, Rakuten established Rakuten Symphony to export its proven virtualized Open RAN software, cloud architecture, and telecom operating systems to mobile network operators globally (such as 1&1 in Germany).
How did Rakuten reorganize its corporate structure in 2021?
In 2021, the company rebranded as Rakuten Group, Inc. and established strategic capital partnerships with Japan Post, Tencent, and Walmart to strengthen its logistics, e-commerce, and mobile infrastructure.
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