Games firm aims for US$1b in Q1

Hong Kong-based game software company Animoca Brands Corporation is looking to raise about US$1 billion (HK$7.8 billion) this quarter for its new Web3 and metaverse investment fund, sharply scaling back its ambitions during the current cryptocurrency industry meltdown.

Animoca Capital is in talks with potential investors and would use the money to support blockchain and metaverse startups, said co-founder Yat Siu, who is also the chairman of Animoca Brands.

The collapse of FTX in early November upended the crypto world, triggering bankruptcies and shutdowns among various industry players. Around a dozen of Animoca's portfolio firms were severely affected by the event beyond the broader market downturn, Siu said. They included NFT spaceship seller Star Atlas, which had much of its treasury sitting on Sam Bankman-Fried's now-defunct trading platform.

"It is fair to say it's a challenging market," Siu said. "But we have quite a bit of interest."

He added that a shaky market could mean Animoca could end up raising slightly less than its targeted amount.

Bloomberg