Trading in online shopping mall operator Rakuten Inc.'s shares was shifted Tuesday to the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange from the Jasdaq market for startups.
The stock closed at ¥1,540 after first changing hands at the start of trading Tuesday at ¥1,542 — the same price at which it closed Monday on the Jasdaq.
"I promise to further enhance our corporate governance and promote our business," Chief Executive Officer Hiroshi Mikitani said at the ceremony held by the Tokyo bourse in the morning.
Rakuten aims to take advantage of the shift to improve its corporate brand and enlarge its shareholder base as it expands its operations to financial business and electronic book sales.
After going public on a predecessor of the Jasdaq market in April 2000, Rakuten was one of the leading brands there.