Coinspeaker
Animoca Brands to Receive $50M from Saudi Arabia’s NEOM to Build Web 3.0 Services with Commercial Application
Hong Kong-based game developer and venture capital company Animoca Brands Corporation Ltd has announced a strategic partnership with Saudi Arabia’s NEOM Investment Fund. The two entities are collaborating to further the Saudi Vision 2030 plan, with Animoca Brands providing Web3 services and handling related initiatives. NEOM is a region in Saudi Arabia’s northwestern region.
According to an official announcement, the NEOM Investment Fund is proposing to invest $50 million into Animoca Brands. The announcement states that $25 million will be invested via convertible notes converted at an A$4.50 price cap, while the other half will be used to purchase Animoca shares on the secondary market. The agreement will involve Animoca building Web3 services with global commercial applications to further NEOM’s plan to become a tech hub.
NEOM Investment Fund CEO Majid Mufti expressed excitement at the partnership. The CEO assured that the company considers Web3 technology and infrastructure development important. Mufti also added that the benefits of the partnership are essential to NEOM’s tech stack and architecture and have the potential to revolutionize global industries.
Animoca Brands Executive Chairman and Co-FOunder Yat Siu said the company is enthusiastic about working with NEOM. Siu noted:
“We are honored and excited to partner with and receive investment from NEOM, one of the world’s most ambitious projects seeking to use innovation and technology to redefine how we live, work, and play. We have always referred to the growth of the Web3 ecosystem as the emergence of a new meta-nation, and now NEOM could well become the first region to fully harness the power of the blockchain.”
NEOM to Invest Animoca Brands While Company Has Hands in Several Web 3.0 Firms
Animoca Brands has acquired Web3 streaming platform Azarus to leverage its game streaming. However, the company did not specify how much it spent on the deal. Nevertheless, Animoca is working at adding the potential for streaming to gaming titles in the Web3 space.
Animoca Brands raised $110 million last year, putting the company at a $5.9 billion valuation. The company launched a $2 billion metaverse fund last November, geared at investing in metaverse businesses. Called Animoca Capital, the metaverse fund raised $20 million last month for Mocaverse, its new metaverse project. The round was led by CMCC Global, with participation from several entities. They include GameFi Ventures, Liberty City Ventures, Sky Mavis founder Aleksander Larsen, and Yat Siu, among others. Siu has previously noted that Animoca is primarily interested in companies that are focused on the open metaverse. According to him, centralized firms threaten the open metaverse.
In addition to acquisitions and investments, the company has created a new offering to help crypto startups with specialized marketing. Run by Animoca’s in-house Digital Asset Team, crypto startups will have access to several services, including setting up nodes and hedging. The ten-member team also helps to ensure adequate buy/sell liquidity for specific assets for improved scalability and efficiency.
