The blockchain gaming platform Animoca Brands has reportedly raised $75 million in a funding round, and its valuation soared to $5.9 billion.
In January this year, the Hong Kong-based company secured a $360 million fundraiser led by Liberty City Ventures, Winklevoss Capital, and Soros Fund Management. According to a coverage by Forbes, the firm doubled down on its expansion plans by closing another financing of $75 million. Similar to January, Liberty City Ventures took part in the event together with 10T Holdings and Kingsway Capital.
Animoca Brands vowed to use the funds to hire more people, upgrade its products, and receive licenses for intellectual properties.
The company’s latest fundraiser comes at a time when crypto is in a state of knockdown. Most assets have lost a significant chunk of their valuation, while many industry participants have dismissed some of their employees or experienced severe operational issues.
The DeFi platform Celsius, for example, halted withdrawals, swaps, and transfers between accounts, citing “extreme market conditions.” Crypto lenders – BlockFi and Vauld – were also significantly affected and had to lay off percentage of their workforce. At a later stage, several reports indicated that those entities might be acquired by other companies – FTX is close to purchasing BlockFi, while Nexo might buy Vauld.
Animoca’s Co-Founder and Chairman – Yat Siu – said the ongoing macroeconomic situation seems challenging, “but at the same time, the current crypto climate has also enabled some users to gain a better entry point to the open Metaverse.”
“Of course, we have to be a bit more prudent, but we have a long-term vision for this space and are both committed and patient,” he justified the $75 million fundraiser.
In addition, the executive predicted that the market’s decline will not go forever and recover in the next one to two years. In his view, the crash will create huge opportunities for the development of the Metaverse, just like the COVID-19 pandemic “highlighted systemic problems in the physical world:”
“New businesses are emerging in the Metaverse that are growing in defiance of the recent market trend, providing more employment and services that help to power the virtual economy.”
Earlier this year, the Hong Kong-based firm purchased the Australian digital asset agency – Be Media. Later, both parties pledged to assist each other and aid Aussie NFT and Metaverse projects.
Back then, Siu opined that Australia offers “tremendous opportunities,” and the acquisition of Be Media will allow his firm to delve into that developing ecosystem.
Animoca Brands has already invested in nearly 200 NFT-related projects, including The Sandbox, Axie Infinity, OpenSea, Yield Guild Games, Harmony, and more.