The accused Square Enix devs allegedly bought stock in developer Aiming Inc. ahead of its announcement of a mobile Dragon Quest game.
According to Automaton (translated by Google), a pair of former Square Enix employees were arrested on suspicions of insider trading. Those two employees, Fumiaki Suzuki and Taisuke Sasaki, had allegedly used information learned during their time at the publisher to buy stock for Japanese developer Aiming Inc.
In a translated statement, Square Enix confirmed that it had been contacted by the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office, and that it would "continue to fully cooperate with the investigation."
Both Suzuki and Sazaki reportedly purchased nearly ¥47 million (or $336,000) in Aiming's stock and planned to sell it at a higher value. The two purchased this stock before it was announced that Aiming was developing Dragon Quest Tact, a mobile game based on Square Enix's popular franchise.
Dragon Quest Tact released in Japan in mid-2020, and was was announced earlier that year. Both Sasaki and Suzuki were employees for Square Enix around that time, and previously helped develop Dragon Quest XI and Dragon Quest X, respectively.
To prevent insider trading in the future, Square Enix has prohibited "the stock trading of the Company and listed companies that have the business relationship with the Company before important non-public information is disclosed."
Further, Square Enix said it will be "tightening internal regulations and conducting more thorough employee education programs."
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