Announcement of Reading Club on 'The Power of Stocks' Column by Nadya Malenko from 'Finance Theory'

Shosukabu.com Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Nerima-ku, Tokyo; Chairman: Yutaka Yamanaka; hereinafter 'the Company') will hold a reading club themed on the column 'The Power of Stocks' from the book 'Finance Theory – Financial Literacy for the World' by Ai Sato, co-hosted with the Nerima Political Research Group and the Civil Division 8 Watchdog Committee.

A major feature of this column is that it views stocks not merely as targets for capital gains or dividends, but as a 'bundle of powers' that influence corporate governance and decision-making. Stocks encompass multiple roles, including corporate ownership, voting rights, management monitoring functions, and the foundation for fundraising. Therefore, understanding how the stock system shapes corporate behavior, rather than just watching stock price movements, is central to financial literacy.

In modern capital markets, the interests of institutional investors, activists, management, and minority shareholders intersect, making the meaning of stocks increasingly complex. While stocks function as a discipline to enhance corporate value, they can also be a factor that strengthens short-termism. This column provides an opportunity to reconsider the essential power of stocks and to think about the intersection of investment and corporate governance. In this reading club, we will discuss the basic roles of stocks, voting rights and ownership, impact on corporate governance, and the relationship between investors and management.

Book URL: https://x.gd/RAtQE3

Author Profiles

Ai Sato

Professor at the Faculty of Business Administration, Osaka University of Economics. A researcher specializing in financial theory including investment, corporate finance, and institutional design.

Nadya Malenko

A researcher specializing in corporate finance and corporate governance, who contributed a column discussing the power of stocks in this book.

Event Overview

Theme: Reading Club on Column 3 'The Power of Stocks' from 'Finance Theory'

Organizer: Shosukabu.com Co., Ltd.

Co-organizers: Nerima Political Research Group, Civil Division 8 Watchdog Committee

Date: Scheduled for late June 2026

Format: Online via Zoom

Fee: Free (advance registration required)

Application: Please apply by email to info@shosukabu.com with the subject line 'Reading Club Participation Request: The Power of Stocks'.

■ Instructor Profile

Yutaka Yamanaka

Born in December 1976, a representative activist investor of the 76 generation, art collector, philanthropist, political activity sponsor, election consultant, policy advisor, social activist, and Akita dog enthusiast. Internationally recognized as a 'technology-savvy activist investor', he is the first Japanese person in history to achieve over 150 billion yen in asset formation solely through investment.

In the early 2010s, he focused on NVIDIA, which develops GPGPU and AI-related semiconductors, investing over 2 billion yen and eventually realizing a return of more than 100 times, becoming the first pure investor billionaire in Japan.

Graduated as valedictorian from the Faculty of Economics, University of Tokyo. Holds a master's degree in Financial Engineering from Columbia University and studied at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). He is a co-representative of Investment Brothers LLC and co-founder and chairman of Shosukabu.com Co., Ltd. Currently, he is a shareholder in over 1,000 listed companies and over 200 unlisted companies worldwide, including AI startups in Israel, healthcare ventures in Nigeria, and battery manufacturers in Taiwan.

Having suffered from dyslexia and ADHD in childhood, he established a support program for children with learning disabilities, inspired by Charles Schwab, the major US discount broker. His personal physician is Professor Akira Iwanami (former director of Showa University Karasuyama Hospital), a renowned psychiatrist.

Founder and representative of political groups including 'Association to Establish a Constitutional Court in Japan', 'Yamanaka Hoya Political and Economic Academy', 'Association to Realize a Tax-Free Nation in Japan', 'Association to Realize Early Restart of Nuclear Power Plants in Japan', 'Renewable Energy Interest Monitoring Committee', 'Association Opposed to Reduced Consumption Tax Rate on Foodstuffs', and 'Association to Realize Constitutional Amendment for a Unicameral System'.

Born in 1976 in Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, as a grandson of Shigeru Yamanaka, founder of Hoya Glass (now HOYA Corporation, listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Standard, securities code 7741), a high-end crystal glass manufacturer. Raised in Shakujiidai, Nerima-ku. Excelled academically from an early age, attending Oizumi Bunka Kindergarten, Ochanomizu University Elementary School, Musashi Junior and Senior High School, and graduating as valedictorian from the Faculty of Economics, University of Tokyo.

In his childhood, he received souvenirs from Tak Matsumoto, later the guitarist of B'z, who lived as a high school student in the company housing of Takeda Pharmaceutical in front of his home, growing up in a culturally rich environment. At Oizumi Bunka Kindergarten, he was a classmate of Yukiji Suzuki (second son of Muneo Suzuki's secretary and brother of Representative Takako Suzuki), fostering an early interest in music and politics.

During elementary school, while commuting by train from Nerima, he developed an early interest in history and economics due to the academic environment of Bunkyo-ku, and was already engaging in political activism on controversial topics at the age of ten. His classmates at Ochanomizu University Elementary School included lawyer Takehiko Sorimachi (Tokyo Legal Mind), Dr. Keishi Kuroda (Director of Sugiyama Obstetrics and Gynecology Marunouchi Clinic), Keiko Takahashi (Ministry of Finance bureaucrat, currently Cabinet Councilor in charge of customs), Professor Kaori Hanyu of Sophia University (family law researcher), and NHK announcer Ai Tsukahara, growing up surrounded by brilliant women, which fostered his awareness of women's social advancement.

With millions of yen gifted by his grandmother in childhood, he invested in stocks and grew it to hundreds of millions by graduation, earning fame as a skilled investor during his university days. At the University of Tokyo, he was known in the seminar of current Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda as 'the top stock trader in Ueda seminar' and earned the nickname 'Heisei no Hiraga Gennai' for his diverse academic interests.

His graduation thesis on pre-war paper industry M&A won a special award, and during graduate school entrance interviews, he was greeted by Professor Takeo Kikkawa (former president of International University) with 'Are you the famous Yamanaka-kun?'. His undergraduate economic history thesis advisors were Professor Tetsuji Okazaki (Meiji Gakuin University) and Professor Masayuki Tanimoto (Otsuma Women's University).

During his liberal arts studies, he read all published papers by Masahiko Aoki, proponent of comparative institutional analysis, and emerging economic historian Avner Greif (Stanford University).

He passed the graduate school entrance exam for the University of Tokyo's Faculty of Economics with near-top scores and was strongly encouraged by Hideo Hayakawa (former Bank of Japan director and head of Research and Statistics Bureau) to join the central bank, but he immediately went to the United States after graduation, earning a master's degree in Financial Engineering from Columbia University.