ForbesAsia-April2018

APRIL 2018 FORBES ASIA | 75

T

akafumi Horie knows all about lying too

close to the sun.

he entrepreneur briely achieved

billionaire status and appeared on the 2005 list

of Japan’s 40 richest before the stock price of his

internet company, Livedoor, cratered. he com-

pany delisted the following year. Horie spent

nearly two years in prison starting in 2011 for

securities law violations.

Now Horie, 45, with a net worth likely less than

$50 million, is reaching beyond earthly pursuits. In

2003 he founded Interstellar Technologies, a rock-

et company aiming to drastically lower the cost of

space-launch services. It is a work in progress. he

launch last year of its irst rocket intended to reach

space ended badly, with the rocket falling into the

ocean a minute ater litof.

Interstellar said in December that a fund man-

ager, Rheos Capital Works, is the main sponsor

of a second light, now set for sometime in April.

he irst launch attempt was inanced primarily

through crowdfunding, with a target of $256,000.

(For about a hundred grand, a donor could push

the launch button.) Horie has said costs need to

come down to the aerospace equivalent of a Honda

Super Cub moped— which costs about $2,500—to

make satellite launches more accessible. He aims to

put small satellites into orbit by 2020 and eventu-

ally develop a rocket for asteroid exploration.

Crowdfunding and six-igure budgets are a

far cry from Horie’s halcyon days over a decade

ago: Besides his brief lirt with billionairedom

then, he also ran for parliament with the back-

ing of Japan’s then-prime minister—unsuccess-

fully. But for Horie, it’s clear that not everything

has come back down to earth. —J.S.

Aiming Higher

TAKAFUMI HORIE

Horie (right) fortune has fallen to earth, but he

has lofty ambitions for his rocket company.

As Japanese automakers position

themselves for the future of electric cars,

Nagamori’s specialized motor manufacturer

Nidec is joining the scramble. Nidec inked

a deal late last year to build electric motors

for Peugeot’s parent company—in France.

Groupe PSA, which also owns the Citroen,

Opel and Vauxhall car brands, announced

the creation of a joint venture with Nidec’s

French arm, Nidec Leroy-Somer Holding, in

December. Nidec absorbed electric motor

maker Leroy-Somer in early 2017 as part of a

$1.2 billion acquisition.

SHIGENOBU NAGAMORI:

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35. KAZUMI IIDA
    $1.35 BILLION 3
    IIDA GROUP HOLDINGS
    AGE: 78


36. SUSUMU FUJITA
    $1.33 BILLION S
    CYBERAGENT
    AGE: 44


37. KAGEMASA KOZUKI
    $1.32 BILLION S
    KONAMI HOLDINGS
    AGE: 77


38. HIROSHI OKURA

$1.3 BILLION (^) Ì
NOEVIR HOLDINGS
AGE: 81

39. SOICHIRO FUKUTAKE
    $1.28 BILLION
    BENESSE HOLDINGS
    AGE: 72


40. EIICHI KURIWADA
    $1.2 BILLION Ì
    SG HOLDINGS AGE: 71


41. YOSHIYUKI SANKAI
    $1.2 BILLION
    CYBERDYNE AGE: 59


42. YOSHIKAZU TANAKA
    $1.17 BILLION
    GREE
    AGE: 41


43. YOSHIKO SHINOHARA
    $1.15 BILLION
    TEMP HOLDINGS
    AGE: 83


44. SHOJI UEHARA
    $1.1 BILLION
    TAISHO PHARMACEUTICAL
    HOLDINGS
    AGE: 90


45. HIROSHI ISHIBASHI
    $1.05 BILLION
    BRIDGESTONE
    AGE: 71


46. HAJIME SATOMI
    $1.04 BILLION S
    SEGA SAMMY HOLDINGS
    AGE: 76


47. MASAYUKI ISHIHARA
    $1.03 BILLION T
    HEIWA AGE: 69


48. YOICHI & KEIKO ERIKAWA
    $1 BILLION
    KOEI TECMO HOLDINGS


49. MASATOSHI KUMAGAI
    $970 MILLION 3
    GMO INTERNET
    AGE: 54


50. HIROKAZU SUGIURA
    $960 MILLION S
    SUGI HOLDINGS AGE: 67

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