Hong Kong-based metaverse gaming company Animoca Brands has raised nearly $369 million in a new funding round. The latest investment saw the company’s valuation hit nearly $5.5 billion, more than doubled than what it was in October.
The funding round was led by Liberty City Ventures, with major VCs such as Soros Fund Management, Sequoia China, 10T Holdings, Mirae Asset, Pacific Century Group, ParaFi Capital, Winklevoss Capital, Gobi Partners Greater Bay Area, and Kingsway also participating in the round.
Apart from developing and owning a broad portfolio of gaming products, Animoca Brands is an active investor in more than 150 metaverse and NFT-related companies and projects, including OpenSea, Dapper Labs, Yield Guild Games, Axie Infinity, and Star Atlas.
Its own portfolio of products includes popular metaverse gaming products The Sandbox, Crazy Kings, Crazy Defense Heroes, and more. With fresh funds, the company plans to continue with more “strategic acquisitions and investments, product development, and licenses for popular intellectual properties.”
In addition, Animoca Brands is also working towards building an open metaverse where users digital property rights through NFTs and blockchain technology. Yat Siu, co-founder and executive chairman of Animoca Brands, commented on the announcement:
“We have set ourselves the ambitious goals of building an open Web3 and facilitating an open metaverse that expands financial inclusion. In 2021 we saw tremendous growth in this space and Animoca Brands has been one of the forefront leaders in the development of this industry.”
Prior to its latest funding, the company previously raised funds via two investment rounds in 2021. In May and July, the company raised $139 million across two tranches, and in October, raised another $65 million. At the time, the company was valued just over $2.2 billion.
“We believe we are still at the initial stages of a new Internet revolution, and there are tremendous opportunities ahead of us in 2022 and beyond,” Siu added.
