Crunchyroll to Become Link-U’s Fifth-Largest Shareholder With 7.03% Stake
Link-U plans to put the investment toward its 2030 strategy, including manga distribution and localization outside Japan.
Crunchyroll will acquire 917 million yen (about US$5.91 million) in Link-U shares through a new business partnership, giving it a 7.03% stake.
Japanese media company Link-U Group announced a business partnership with Crunchyroll on Monday. Crunchyroll will acquire a 7.03% stake, making it Link-U’s fifth-largest shareholder once the transaction closes.
Link-U issued shares through a third-party allotment at 856 yen (about US$5.50) each. Crunchyroll will purchase 917 million yen (about US$5.91 million) worth of those shares.
Link-U will put the investment toward its “medium-term management plan 2030,” also announced Monday. The strategy includes expanding manga distribution outside Japan by developing distribution platforms and managing localization.
The Crunchyroll Manga app debuted on iOS and Android in the United States and Canada in October 2025. The ad-free app operates separately from Crunchyroll’s main streaming service. Crunchyroll identifies Link-U Group as the company powering it.
The service’s publishing partners include:
- AlphaPolis
- Compass
- Square Enix
- Viz Media
- Yen Press
- Shueisha
- J-Novel Club
- ThirdlineNEXT
Link-U operates services including:
- Comikey, a digital manga site
- Compass, a digital manga store
- Studio Moon6, a webtoon company
- Romanz, a VTuber and streaming production company
Beyond Crunchyroll Manga, Link-U has worked on Shueisha’s MANGA Plus and Square Enix’s Manga UP!, along with similar manga services from other companies.
An update corrected a typo and thanked SinisterOracle for flagging it.
