Naruatsu Baba
BornJanuary 1978
Itami, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan
NationalityJapanese
EducationKyushu Institute of Technology
Known forFounder and majority owner of the smartphone-game maker Colopl

Naruatsu Baba (馬場 功淳, Baba Naruatsu) is a Japanese smartphone game developer and businessman, founder and majority owner of the smartphone-game maker, Colopl.

Early life

Naruatsu Baba was born in Itami (near Osaka), Japan. He had heart problems during his youth (corrected by an operation while in university) and took up video games in lieu of intense physical activity.[1] He graduated from Kyushu Institute of Technology.

Career

Baba joined KLab in 2003 and briefly worked at GREE starting in 2007.[2] However, even while working full-time at start-up companies, he had been developing mobile game applications and websites as a side business since his university days.[3][4]

He founded Colopl in 2008 as a developer and owns 59% of the company. Colopl has five of the largest-grossing apps for Android smartphones, including Professional Baseball PRIDE, Treasure Trove Detective and Dino Dominion.[5]

According to Forbes, he had an estimated net worth of $1.9 billion as of December 2014.[5] The estimate had dwindled to $700 million by 2017[6]

Personal life

He is divorced, with one child.[5]

References

  1. ↑ "第127回 株式会社コロプラ 代表取締役GM 馬場功淳2 | 起業事例 | 起業・開業・独立・会社設立ならドリームゲート - ベンチャー・起業家支援サイト". case.dreamgate.gr.jp. Retrieved 2016-08-03.
  2. ↑ "役員紹介". colopl.co.jp. Retrieved 2016-08-03.
  3. ↑ "第127回 株式会社コロプラ 代表取締役GM 馬場功淳 | 起業事例 | 起業・開業・独立・会社設立ならドリームゲート - ベンチャー・起業家支援サイト". case.dreamgate.gr.jp. Retrieved 2016-08-03.
  4. ↑ "総資産1千億円以上の会長と社長 コロプラの馬場功淳社長など - ライブドアニュース" (in Japanese). Retrieved 2016-08-03.
  5. 1 2 3 "Naruatsu Baba". Forbes. Retrieved 18 March 2016.
  6. ↑ "Naruatsu Baba". Forbes.
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