Animoca Brands releases a $2 billion metaverse fund for 2023

Web3 gaming company Animoca Brands has announced plans to launch a $2 billion fund destined for the metaverse industry. The company’s co-founder Yat Siu detailed that the fund will target mid to late-stage metaverse projects.

Animoca Brands is a renowned venture capital player in the Web3 space. The company invested in more than 380 Web3 projects, with 66 investments made in the first half of 2022, a record in the crypto industry.

The fund will focus mainly on digital property rights, one of Animoca’s top priorities. The Hong Kong-based company divides its blockchain investments into three categories:

• Blockchain games — online games powered by NFTs and in-game tokens, Animoca’s list of blockchain games includes Arc8, Revv Motorsport, and Phantom Galaxies.
• NFTs — the digital collectibles represent proof of ownership and come in the form of avatars, PFPs, artwork, and more.
• The metaverse — this segment is driven by Animoca’s top product, The Sandbox, a gamified metaverse that includes its native token, SAND.

Although the fund comes at a fragile moment for the Web3 space due to the ongoing crypto winter and recent FTX crash, Siu believes it’s an ideal time to double down and create new opportunities for the market. He claims the fund will allow investors to access Web3 companies with greater ease.

In July, Animoca Brands raised $75.3 million in funding and reached a valuation of $5.9 billion. Two months later, the company received another $110 million in investments from Temasek and GGV Capital.

As the FIFA World Cup advances, Animoca Brands and Cool Cats recently partnered with OneFootball Labs to launch a collection of 4,000 NFTs dubbed Cool Cats FC. The project connects the Cool Cats community with football fans to celebrate the FIFA World Cup.