is a Japanese businessman. During the Japanese economic bubble, Forbes listed Tsutsumi as the wealthiest person in the world during 1987–94 due to his extensive real estate investments through the Seibu Corporation, which he controlled. In 1987, he had a net worth of $20 billion (approximately $ in today's value). However, as a result of a series of scandals and his 2005 arrest, his net worth has fallen to such an extent that he was taken off the Forbes list of billionaires in 2007. Early life Tsutsumi was born May 29, 1934, to businessman Yasujirō Tsutsumi and his mistress Ishizaka Tsuneko. He was one of Yasujirō's seven children, and spent his childhood in a Tokyo suburb with Tsuneko and his two younger brothers, Yasuhiro and Yuji. When he was around 7 years old, he met his then-14-year-old half-brother Seiji Tsutsumi; the two were said to have an immediate disdain for each other. Tsutsumi was said to have inherited his father's personality; he claimed to have begun assisting his father's business in elementary school, beginning with simple tasks like holding blueprints. Though his father subjected him to physical discipline, Tsutsumi was said to be his favorite—something that gained him significant corporate and political influence. Tsutsumi graduated from Waseda University in 1957. Business career Tsutsumi made his earliest forays into business as a university student: in 1956, he opened the Karuizawa Skate Center in Nagano. Upon graduating in 1957, he was employed by Kokudo Keikaku Kogyo (later Kokudo Corporation), of which his father was the chairman. In April 1964, Tsutsumi's father Yasujirō died. Despite the disagreement of his widow Masao, the thirty-year-old Yoshiaki Tsutsumi inherited control of the Seibu Corporation. Most observers had expected the designated successor to be his elder half-brother Seiji Tsutsumi, who instead inherited the Seibu department stores. Though Seiji subsequently parlayed these stores into the Credit Saison empire, perceived rivalry between the two brothers' fiefdoms provided fodder for the popular press. As chairman, Tsutsumi focused on developing and expanding the vast land holdings inherited from his father. At one point, his companies were believed to own one-sixth of all the land in Japan. A significant portion of Tsutsumi's business ventures went towards sports: he served as chairman of the Japan Ice Hockey Federation and owned the Seibu Tetsudo hockey club. Though he reportedly did not have much knowledge of baseball, 1979 saw his purchase of the Seibu Lions