SC Ventures, the investment arm of Standard Chartered bank, and SBI Holdings, the Japanese financial conglomerate, have teamed up to set up a $100 million crypto vehicle in the United Arab Emirates.
The vehicle, in the form of a joint venture, plans to invest in crypto in areas such as decentralized finance, tokenization, infrastructure, payments and the metaverse, the two companies said on Thursday. The goal is to invest globally and cover seed to series C funding rounds.
The news comes with crypto markets showing signs of recovery, indicating potentially bullish sentiment. Bitcoin is currently trading at around $36,800, which represents a one-year gain of more than 120%. Spot crypto trading volume on centralized exchanges also increased in October, after four months of decline. If these numbers indicate a renewed interest in cryptocurrencies, it is likely in anticipation of a spot Bitcoin ETF approval early next year.
‘Strategic and minority investments’
The SC Ventures and SBI Holdings joint venture plans to make “strategic and minority investments” in crypto startups, SC Ventures CEO Alex Manson said in a statement. “The joint venture will leverage SC Ventures’ experience in digital assets through our ventures, such as Zodia Custody and Zodia Markets, and through our investments in fintechs such as Ripple and Metaco,” he added.
In May, SC Ventures exited its stake in Metaco when Ripple acquired it for $250 million. Meanwhile, SC Ventures and SBI Holdings have previously invested in the same startups, including Solv, Zodia Custody and myZoi.
SBI Holdings will also launch a separate fund at the end of this year to invest up to 100 billion yen ($663 million) in web3, AI and fintech startups. reported from Nikkei today. Japanese financial giants Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, Mizuho Bank, Nippon Life Insurance and Daiwa Securities Group have reportedly already decided to invest more than 50 billion yen in the fund.
