Twin Engine Locks ¥4B Bandai Pact to Build Anime IPs From Scratch

Japan’s anime production giant Twin Engine has sealed a strategic partnership with toy-and-merch powerhouse Bandai, committing as much as ¥4 billion (about US$25 million) to invent original intellectual property from the ground up—manga first, then animation, then the full merchandise pipeline.

Under the deal, Twin Engine will steer planning, production, promotion, and distribution on the animation side, while Bandai covers product design, marketing, licensing, and long-term brand value. The companies argue that when original development, animation, and commercialization sit in separate silos, hit IPs are harder to grow with a single vision—so they want one shared map from the first storyboard sketch.

Twin Engine already runs a sprawling “studio-first” network of 18 animation studios and creative units, with credits ranging from Vinland Saga and Witch Hat Atelier to Cosmic Princess Kaguya!. The Bandai pact follows a May 2026 capital-and-business framework with SBI Holdings aimed at financing original anime for global audiences—another sign the producer is scaling from pure production house into full-stack IP builder.

Specific titles under the partnership remain under wraps, with more details promised soon. For fans, the message is simple: expect new manga-born anime—and the toys, figures, and collabs to match—from a group that already knows how to put ambitious series on screen.

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