By
Steve Muchoki
April 23rd, 2024
Animoca has been heavily investing in blockchain gaming, NFTs and digital property rights for the open metaverse.
Hong Kong-based NFT platform Ucollex has completed its series A funding. The firm closed the funding round led by the serial investor Animoca Brands with $10 million. MCP Asset Management also participated in the funding round through the MCP IPX One Fund.
According to a company executive, the funds will be used to scale operations and further develop the platform. The company also hopes to announce some partnerships and will deploy the funds into additional marketing efforts.
Ucollex which creates digital assets from physical collectables guarantees an exclusive immersive experience for its community platform. The innovative platform offers unique content, artist interviews, 3D art and virtual reality experiences. To use the platform, collectors can invest in the collectables without a digital wallet. They can also buy and sell collectables easily on the marketplace or simply discover rare projects and collaborations.
CEO of Ucollex Robert Tran noted that the company was focusing its efforts on anime, toy and pop culture illustrators in 2022 given the way the areas have been impacting new consumer spending. He said:
”’Collectortainment’ is going to be our core offering here as we look to bridge the existing global fandom for pop culture collectables into the new paradigm of blockchain ownership and utility.”
Co-founder and Executive Chairman of Animoca Brands, Yat Siu, expressed delight in the company for leading the investment. He said:
“We believe it will make it easier for intellectual properties to participate in the open metaverse.”
Ucollex: One of Many
Animoca has been heavily investing in blockchain gaming, NFTs and digital property rights for the open metaverse. Apart from being the parent company of the Sandbox, the company boasts investments in more than 150 projects. Some of the most popular of those projects include Axie Infinity, OpenSea, Harmony, and Dapper Labs.
Apart from blockchain gaming and metaverse plays, Animoca also invests in DeFi, infrastructure, esports and art. The company recently participated in the funding round of Dropp GG when the latter raised $8 Million. Animoca also announced a joint venture with Cube Entertainment. The venture, named AniCube from the name of the partners will see AniCube build a music metaverse and issue NFTs based on its actors and music artists.
Animoca recently completed a funding round, raising $358 million and is now valued at $5.8 billion. Ucollex may very well be the latest direction of investment but it certainly won’t be the last.