Japanese billionaire gives away $9 million to followers to boost happiness

Zozo Chief Executive Yusaku Maezawa speaks during a press conference in Tokyo. File picture: Koji Sasahara/AP

Zozo Chief Executive Yusaku Maezawa speaks during a press conference in Tokyo. File picture: Koji Sasahara/AP

Published Jan 8, 2020

Share

Tokyo - Japanese fashion tycoon Yusaku

Maezawa is giving away $9 million to his Twitter followers in

what he says is a "social experiment" to see if the payment

boosts their happiness.

Maezawa will give 1 million yen ($9,000) to 1,000 followers

selected at random from those who retweeted a Jan. 1 post, with

the impact of the money to be tracked through regular surveys.

"It's a serious social experiment," said Maezawa on YouTube,

adding he hopes to attract interest from academics and

economists.

Maezawa, who is to be the first private passenger to fly

around the moon with Elon Musk's SpaceX, is known for his high

spending on art and sports cars but also has a predilection for

musing on ideas like a world without money.

He tied the giveaway to the idea of basic income, or the

theory of providing a periodic no-strings-attached payment to

all citizens, that has gained traction in some political circles

and is backed by Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Andrew

Yang.

"Basic means a regular minimum amount offering a sense of

security, what Maezawa is offering is totally different," said

Toshihiro Nagahama, senior economist at Dai-ichi Life Research

Institute.

Maezawa said that given that he "has the money and free

time" to make the payments, he felt the need to try and inspire

greater debate over the merits of the theory in Japan.

The idea of a universal basic income has gained support over

fears technology such as artificial intelligence will wipe out

large numbers of jobs but that concern is for now less

pronounced in Japan with its tight labour market, said Nagahama.

Its the second, larger, giveaway by the entrepreneur, who in

November secured a $900 million payday through the sale of his

online fashion business Zozo Inc to SoftBank Group Corp

.

Maezawa, who recently grabbed headlines after his split from

actress girlfriend Ayame Goriki, has gathered almost 7 million

followers on Twitter with his mix of displays of conspicuous

consumption and folksy pronouncements on the meaning of life.

YouTube is the latest online outlet for the businessman,

with videos including a tour of his private jet, a visit to the

barber to dye his hair and updating his bank book after

November's windfall.

The debate over basic income comes as income inequality

continues to grow in the United States, where in recent years

some of its wealthiest entrepreneurs, from Microsoft

co-founder Bill Gates to investor Warren Buffet, have pledged to

give away most of their wealth.

* Receive IOL's top stories via Whatsapp by sending your name to 0745573535

Reuters

Related Topics: