SBI launches new flagship “SBI Digital Space Fund” with up to JPY 100bn
SBI Investment, a wholly-owned subsidiary of SBI Holdings that operates and manages venture capital funds, announced that fundraising for its new flagship fund “SBI Digital Space Fund” (formal name: SBI Venture Fund 2023 Investment Limited Partnership) has been progressing smoothly and it will formally commence investments.
To date, SBI Investment has formed venture funds totaling JPY 716.7bn. In recent years, starting with the “FinTech Fund” (total committed capital: JPY 30bn) formed in 2015, SBI Investment has formed flagship funds on a national scale, including the “SBI AI & Blockchain Fund” (total committed capital: JPY 60bn) in 2018, and the “SBI 4+5 Fund” (total committed capital: JPY 100bn) in 2020.
This time, SBI Investment has formed a new flagship fund with a maximum scale of JPY 100bn as the successor fund to the “SBI 4+5 Fund”. Domestic and overseas investors have highly evaluated the past investment activities, with the latest valuation of the FinTech Fund formed in 2015 surpassing three times the initial amount. In addition to existing investors such as Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, The Dai-ichi Life Insurance Company, Mizuho Bank, and The Bank of Fukuoka, SBI Investment has received investments from leading domestic institutional investors including Nippon Life Insurance Company as well as major corporations including Mandam and Sanyo Foods.
The Fund will focus on a wide range of areas with innovative technologies and services that are expected to be growth industries in the future, including “Digital Space” such as Web3 and the metaverse, as well as “AI”, “fintech”, “healthcare”, “DX (digital transformation)”, and “climate tech” which have been emphasized in the past.
Through the broad network of startup companies in which the Fund will invest, SBI Investment will more proactively promote activities towards solving social issues such as promoting DX and open innovation. They will support open innovation between investors and invested companies, maximize fund performance by increasing the value of invested companies, and strive to vitalize the startup ecosystem, which is in line with the national policy of “support measures for startups”. By supporting the enhancement of services provided by invested companies and investors, SBI aims to contribute to the growth and development of new industries.
Going forward, SBI will continue to actively work on nurturing next-generation industries and increasing the corporate value of venture companies in which they invest.
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