Weekly
Welcome to the one hundred thirty-first edition of the Japan FinTech Observer. We tried to have the publication of our weekly report co-incide with quarter-end (at least that is this week's excuse), and follow the first two trading days of the spun-out Sony Financial. After an indicative price
blockchain
Nonagon Capital, a venture fund that invests in cryptocurrency and blockchain startups, announces the launch of support services for major domestic companies to begin validator operations, in addition to operating its own blockchain validators. Background For approximately three years, Nonagon Capital has been conducting investment activities. During this time, the
venture capital
FormX has completed a seed round funding of 130 million yen in total. The lead investor is Genesia Ventures, with additional participation from Chiba Dojo Fund and multiple CFO angel investors. This funding will accelerate the development of its "Disclosure Platform" and strengthen its organizational foundation. About FormX
venture capital
Amid the rise of “agent commerce,” GMO Venture Partners have invested in Crossmint alongside Circle and other investors. Crossmint provides infrastructure that enables seamless integration of payments and remittances across both fiat currencies and stablecoins. Crossmint offers a unified API and wallet SDK that bridges fiat and stablecoins, allowing enterprises
Weekly
Welcome to the one hundred thirtieth edition of the Japan FinTech Observer. Last week, the World Athletic Championships took place in Tokyo, putting the Olympic Stadium finally to the grand use it was designed for (including an audience!). Whether inspired by the athletic performances or not, the Bank of Japan
Weekly
Welcome to the one hundred twenty-ninth edition of the Japan FinTech Observer. The Bank of Japan will hold its Monetary Policy Meeting on September 18 & 19, following the FOMC in the US. The consensus expectation is for the Bank to keep its policy rate on hold this time; beyond
Weekly
Welcome to the one hundred twenty-eighth edition of the Japan FinTech Observer. Prime Minister Ishiba announced his resignation right after he "gave away the store" to Trump, as Richard Katz observed. As the governmental budget season is under way, the Financial Services Agency has requested the highly anticipated
venture capital
Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC), alongside the Development Bank of Japan, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank as well as nine other Japanese companies, has invested in Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS), a US-based start-up company in fusion space. This is the inaugural investment for SMBC in a fusion-related start-up company. The fusion
corporate venture capital
Pointsville, a pioneering platform for digital asset infrastructure and loyalty, has completed its Series A funding round led by Valor Capital Group, with participation from an exceptional group of global investors and industry leaders. Backers include Tether, Itaú Unibanco's founding family, Nubank's co-founder, Temasek-backed Superscrypt, SNZ,
venture capital
MUFG Bank and MUFG Innovation Partners (MUIP), both consolidated subsidiaries of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), have made an investment in LayerX, a startup focused on equipping society with AI-centered software. MUFG Bank also signed a strategic partnership memorandum of understanding with LayerX to further deepen their collaborative relationship. MUIP’
Weekly
Welcome to the one hundred twenty-seventh edition of the Japan FinTech Observer. Congratulations to the WebX & Coinpost teams for delivering an outstanding conference! Although SBI took the headlines with a full plate of announcements already on the Friday prior in Osaka, the news flow did not let up. More
venture capital
Tokyo and Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm DNX Ventures has completed the formation of the "4th Japan Annex Fund" with DNX as the general partner, totaling 24.7 billion yen. The 3rd Japan Annex Fund, which announced its final close in 2024, completed its full capital deployment early