The fund, dubbed Emoote, will look to back startups working on projects in GameFi, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and the metaverse, Akatsuki said in a press release.
The name Emoote was chosen to signal that NFT consumption is based on “emotional values,” Akatsuki added.
The business has form for investing in crypto-adjacent projects, having funded more than 20 early stage startups, including rapidly scaling move-to-earn startup Stepn.
Its investment focus is 50% in Asia and 40% in the United States, with the remainder of funds being channeled towards other regions. The firm said the fund would also focus its efforts on collaborating with Japanese entertainment and media companies.
Akatsuki is a Tokyo-listed business first incorporated in 2010. It gained global presence for co-developing the hit title Dragon Ball Z: Dokkan Battle with Bandai Namco Entertainment. The title has earned over 350 million downloads worldwide as of May 1.
Emoote follows a number of investors hoping to hit it big through web3 projects. Earlier in May, venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz launched a $600 million fund known as Games Fund One.
