We are announcing our $40 Million Seed VC Fund specialized in Web3 -Skyland Ventures
Skyland Ventures (headquartered in Tokyo; Partner and CEO: Max Kinoshita; hereafter “SV”) announces the establishment of a new fund, SV4 Fund, and the start of new investments.
In addition to the previous investments in the broad range of internet companies, the SV4 Fund will actively invest in both equity and tokens in startups worldwide in the Web3 (Crypto, NFT, Blockchain) field which has been a popular topic as well as a business trend worldwide since 2021.
◆SV is updating its mission statement from “The Seed Maker.” to “The Seed Maker. & Unlearning.”
Since our establishment in 2012, we have been investing in startups that are creating new business domains in fields such as VR, AI, Live streaming. We have embodied our mission of being “The Seed Maker” by investing in startups in the earliest stages and supporting them to pioneer new domains. SV’s portfolio includes Cluster (metaverse platform), ANY COLOR (production company specialized in virtual YouTubers), ROXX (online reference checking service), Aidemy (AI insourcing support mainly for the manufacturing industry), and M&A cloud (online marketplace for M&A), GITAI (development of general-purpose work robots for space), LEAN BODY (online fitness service), Posiwill (online career coaching service), TranSe (online creative school), LUCO (design tool for live-streaming), Ekaki (voice note taking tool).
From the experience of our first Web3 investment in December 2021 in Alyawmu (NFT as a return for the Hometown Tax Donation Program, “Furusato Nozei”) and our involvement in Nanameue (virtual world “Yay!”), which announced a token issuance and IEO* plan in April 2022 and in which we have been involved since the company’s establishment, we have a strong conviction in the growth potential of the Web3 market. This strong belief has led to the establishment of our new fund specializing in the Web3 field with a total of approximately $40 Million. As of April 2022, the SV4 fund has reached an investment commitment of approximately $5.5 Million.
Equity and token investments in startups in Web3 involve several concepts that differ from existing startup investments to date, such as business models, teams, management methods, even the role of a nation, and require facing the ever-changing market. Therefore, we added “Unlearning.” to our mission statement which makes the new mission statement: “The Seed Maker. & Unlearning.”
*IEO is the abbreviation for “Initial Exchange Offering” and it is a process in which blockchain projects launch on a Cryptocurrency Exchange and selling their tokens in order to raise capital. It is similar to IPO for conventional startups.
◆The Web3 (Crypto, NFT, Blockchain) market
As of April 2022, there are only a handful of Japanese startups in Web3 that have received VC funding, however, on a global scale, as shown in the chart below, in Q4 2021, there were more than 500 VC-backed startups which in total raised $10B in funding. Our new fund aims to incubate a large number of Web3 startups to bring better products to the global market.
◆New investments from SV4 in Web3
We have already invested or agreed to invest in 6 startups in the Web3 space, including some that are completely new and others from existing portfolio companies as they transitioned to the Web3 space.
Website and Twitter accounts of the companies above
Cool Connect @imoto_akira #CoolGirlNFT
◆Comment on the launch of Skyland Ventures 4th Fund
We are pleased to announce the launch of Skyland Ventures 4th fund and I would like to thank all of the early investors for their commitment. For us, focusing on Web3 was a new challenge as there are not a lot of examples in Japan, however, it simultaneously opened up many new possibilities. In addition, the number of SV members has increased from 4 people in January 2022, when we started the formation, to 10 people in April 2022, and we have excellent members who will join us in the near future. I believe this is due to the fact that there are many people who believe in the future of Web3 and have the desire to work in the field of VC.
We have new members with unique skills, such as lawyers and video creators, as well as global members who are not from Japan, and members who are based outside of Japan. Currently, even in the internet field, the Japanese domestic market has been isolated for the longest time. We believe that Web3 is the only way to free Japan from its isolation, and we look forward to working with young entrepreneurs who are using new technologies to challenge the global market.
ー Max Kinoshita, Partner/CEO, Skyland Ventures
https://www.linkedin.com/in/kinoshitay/
https://twitter.com/kinoshitay
◆About Skyland Ventures
Skyland Ventures (SV) is a venture capital (VC) fund focusing on seed startup investments. With a mission of “The Seed Maker. & Unlearning.”, we make equity and token investments that provide seed money to startups that will have a significant impact on the technology industry. To date, we have invested in over 120 startups, mainly in Japan. From 2022 onwards, the company is focusing on investing in Web3 (Crypto, NFT, Blockchain) startups.
URL: http://skyland.vc
Get in touch with us through emailing; info@skyland.vc
