By
Chimamanda U. Martha
April 19th, 2024
As a giant infrastructure builder and financier, Animoca Brands has seen its ecosystem increase in a very remarkable way in the past few years.
Animoca Brands KK, the Japanese subsidiary of Animoca Brands Corporation Limited, has announced it has raised the sum of $45 million to bolster its Web3.0 engagement. Animoca Brands Japan saw funding from its strategic partners including banking giant, MUFG Bank, Ltd, and the parent company, Animoca Brands.
Animoca Brands have a somewhat related, but uniquely specific business focus that borders primarily on bolstering Non-Fungible Token (NFT) related businesses. The funding round has pushed the Japanese startup to a pre-money valuation of $500 million. The funding partnership with MUFG is a breakthrough milestone for the startup as it has always looked forward to doing business with the banking giant on NFT-related innovations.
The Web3.0 ecosystem is expanding at a very sporadic pace, and the NFT subsector comes off as one of the first major ways innovators are making their dive into the scene. Through NFTs, Play-2-Earn (P2E) games are built, as well as other utilities that can help drive the mainstream adoption of this sector.
Investors are realizing the potential NFTs bring to the emerging Web3.0 world in general, and this remains what has fueled the growth of Animoca Brands Japan since its inception.
As announced by the company, Animoca Brands said its Japanese subsidiary will use the acquired funds to “continue to secure licenses for popular intellectual properties, develop internal capabilities, and promote adoption of Web3 to multiple partners, increasing the value and utility of their branded content while fostering the development of a safe and secure NFT ecosystem in Japan.”
Expanding Animoca Brands Ecosystem
As a giant infrastructure builder and financier, Animoca Brands has seen its ecosystem increase in a very remarkable way in the past few years.
As a global brand on its own, Animoca Brands has attracted quite a number of top-tier investors into its fold. This year alone, Animoca Brands has raised capital in two major funding rounds including $358 million in January and $75 million in July respectively.
This enormous capital base helped the company withstand the pangs of the crypto winter that saw financial giants like Three Arrows Capital (3AC) go bankrupt in the second quarter. With its backing and strategy, Animoca Brands has been making a series of strategic acquisitions, a move that is helping to expand its ecosystem across the board.
In April of this year, Animoca Brands made two strategic acquisitions including that of Eden Games from Engine Gaming and Media, as well as Australian digital marketing agency, Be Media. For Animoca Brands, its influence has not only extended into NFT and metaverse-related protocols but its role in the broader blockchain ecosystem has also been ascertained in its involvement with innovative protocols building solutions in the industry.
Animoca Brands recently made a number of targeted hires, as it looks forward to further future expansion.