Key Takeaways
- • Across Ventures and SBI Holdings have established a $100 million fund-of-funds structure with SBI serving as anchor investor, targeting deployment across more than 20 micro-VC funds sized between $20 million and $50 million.
- • The fund will concentrate investment exposure in AI, fintech, blockchain, climate tech, and health tech sectors, positioning the partnership to capture emerging technology trends across both US and Japanese markets.
- • Emi Yoshikawa, former VP of Strategy and Operations at Ripple, leads Across Ventures and will direct the fund's strategy, bringing cryptocurrency and blockchain expertise to the partnership.
- • The partnership explicitly bridges US micro-venture capital firms with Japanese corporate investors and technology sector participants, leveraging SBI's established market presence in Japan and Across Ventures' US technology network.
Summary
Across Ventures and SBI Holdings, a Tokyo-based financial services conglomerate, have launched a $100 million fund-of-funds designed to invest in early-stage micro-venture capital firms while simultaneously connecting Japanese corporate capital with US-based technology entrepreneurs. SBI Holdings serves as the anchor investor in the structure, providing strategic capital and institutional credibility to the initiative.
The fund will deploy capital across more than 20 micro-VC funds, each typically sized between $20 million and $50 million in assets under management. This fund-of-funds approach allows the partnership to achieve diversified exposure across emerging technology verticals without concentrating risk in individual venture vehicles. The targeted investment sectors include artificial intelligence, fintech, blockchain, climate technology, and healthcare technology—segments that represent both secular growth opportunities and strategic interest for Japanese corporate participants.
Emi Yoshikawa, formerly VP of Strategy and Operations at Ripple, leads Across Ventures and will oversee fund deployment and strategy. Yoshikawa's background at Ripple, particularly involvement in building Japan's XRP strategy, positions her with direct experience navigating both US fintech ecosystems and Japanese financial market dynamics. This cross-border expertise directly supports the partnership's core mandate: establishing meaningful connections between US micro-venture capital innovation and Japanese institutional and corporate capital seeking exposure to emerging technologies.
The strategic alliance reflects broader institutional appetite for structured exposure to early-stage venture capital through fund-of-funds vehicles, particularly where geographic arbitrage and sector specialization create differentiated access to deal flow and network effects across markets.
The fund will deploy capital across more than 20 micro-VC funds, each typically sized between $20 million and $50 million in assets under management. This fund-of-funds approach allows the partnership to achieve diversified exposure across emerging technology verticals without concentrating risk in individual venture vehicles. The targeted investment sectors include artificial intelligence, fintech, blockchain, climate technology, and healthcare technology—segments that represent both secular growth opportunities and strategic interest for Japanese corporate participants.
Emi Yoshikawa, formerly VP of Strategy and Operations at Ripple, leads Across Ventures and will oversee fund deployment and strategy. Yoshikawa's background at Ripple, particularly involvement in building Japan's XRP strategy, positions her with direct experience navigating both US fintech ecosystems and Japanese financial market dynamics. This cross-border expertise directly supports the partnership's core mandate: establishing meaningful connections between US micro-venture capital innovation and Japanese institutional and corporate capital seeking exposure to emerging technologies.
The strategic alliance reflects broader institutional appetite for structured exposure to early-stage venture capital through fund-of-funds vehicles, particularly where geographic arbitrage and sector specialization create differentiated access to deal flow and network effects across markets.
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