Table of Contents
Domestic funds that also invest in STEPN
The biggest market is "Web3 x games"
The entertainment industry can no longer ignore the existence of NFTs. Web3 Fund, which originates from Japan, aims to compete against the world and reach great heights.
Attention to the Web3 area is increasing day by day, and the number of institutional investors entering the field is also increasing. Amid the emergence of Japanese-originated Web3-specific funds, ``Emoote'' was born from Akatsuki Co., Ltd. last year.
Emoote is led by Yuji Kumagai, who has a proven track record as a serial entrepreneur. Mr. Kumagai, who is well versed in the entertainment field, has already invested in STEPN and YGG Japan, and his next investment destination is also attracting attention.
Kumagai: I think there will inevitably be a heavy atmosphere at the start of 2023 for the Web3 area as a whole. Due to various incidents such as the bankruptcy of the crypto asset exchange FTX, the token price and the enthusiasm of the entire community have calmed down, and this situation will not be resolved in the short term. The market will also be affected by the macro economy, so we think it is difficult to see a dramatic recovery in market conditions as a whole in 2023. That said, I believe that new infrastructure reinforcement and application preparation will continue steadily, so we expect that something that will impact market conditions will emerge from around the end of 2023 or early 2024 at the earliest. There is. This year will be a year in which the foundation for this will be solidified. GameFi is the fastest growing market.
Games are one of the largest industries in the entertainment field, even if Web3 is not involved. Therefore, there is no doubt that the market that combines Web3 and games has the potential to become the largest. Even if market conditions are bad, the situation will change if an interesting game comes out.
Even within the Web3 field, especially in the entertainment field, I think this year will be the year when businesses will no longer be able to ignore the existence of NFTs.
We believe that NFT will be a good tool for delivering new entertainment experiences. For in-game assets, memberships, live tickets, etc., NFTs have greater benefits for users in the long term. This may be the year when it becomes commonplace for all kinds of services and digital content to become NFTs.
Although the fusion of NFTs and the real world is not necessarily the key, NFTs tied to real estate or tangible value will be important for mass adoption.
A good example is STEPN, which valued the behavioral habit of running and linked it to NFTs. The addition of human instincts and behavioral economics, and the linking with real economic activities, had a significant effect on market expansion.
Based in Singapore, we will continue to support new projects mainly in Asia while maintaining Japanese values. We have already invested in STEPN, which I mentioned earlier, and I would like to work with them to create projects like this that will have an impact on the world.
In Japan, there are not many players competing against the world, so we will do this while maintaining Japanese values and aim for even greater heights.
◉Yuji Kumagai
Based in Singapore, he conducts Web3 investments mainly in the entertainment and media fields. Major investments include STEPN, BreederDAO, EthSign, and YGG Japan. In 2014, he became co-representative director and COO of iemo Co., Ltd. and sold the company to DeNA Co., Ltd. In 2015, he founded SkyBall Co., Ltd., a sports tech business, and sold the company to Akatsuki Co., Ltd. in 2018.
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