Portfolio Shakeup

SoftBank Bids Goodbye to Early Stage Fund, Razer Targets Web3 Games, and a Startup Looks to Institute a Capital Market Makeover.

Author

Adam from VC Brags
April 13, 2023

Welcome Shareholders,

In this daily edition of the Brags Newsletter, weā€™ll cover how SoftBank scraps its early stage plans after losses rack up, Razer starts its own Web3 Fund for Innovative Blockchain games, and a Startup looks to reinvent capital markets with its new funding.

So sit back, grab a snack, and enjoy!

Venture Today šŸ‘

  • SoftBank Group is divesting its early-stage venture capital subsidiary, SoftBank Ventures Asia, following billions of dollars in losses from unsuccessful startup investments.

SoftBank intends to sell its early-stage scouting arm, SoftBank Ventures Asia, to The Edgeof, a new venture capital firm led by Mistletoe founder Taizo Son. The Seoul-based venture capital subsidiary, with about $2 billion in assets, has invested in companies like car-sharing firm Socar, social commerce platform Super, and online shopping rewards-focused ShopBack.

SoftBank Ventures Asia has facilitated larger deals for SoftBank's Vision Fund through its initial investments, as demonstrated by Singapore's Carro, which secured $360 million from Vision Fund II in 2021. Other instances include Nigerian fintech app Opay, South Korea's metaverse platform Zepeto, and Japan's sneaker marketplace Soda. SoftBank has invested over $144 billion in hundreds of companies since 2017 and recently posted a $5.9 billion net loss in the December quarter, due to significant write-downs on loss-making startups within its Vision Fund segment.

Whoā€™s Raising?

  • Gaming tech and accessories maker Razer will venture into Web3 by launching an investment fund to aid blockchain-based game developers and projects.

The fund, which is called zVentures Web3 Incubator (ZW3I) will focus on investing in early-stage Web3 gaming projects. The fund will look at supporting games that are fun to play, have solid roadmaps, and has reputable teams. In addition to supporting emerging projects, ZW3I will also focus on companies in the broader gaming industry.

Companies that receive an investment will have access to Razerā€™s marketing and partnership resources and Web3 partners such as Animoca Brands and Griffin Gaming Partners, and software companies like Amazon Web Services.

Startup of the Day

  • Clear Street, which is looking to develop capital market infrastructure, has just secured $270 million in a Series B funding round led by growth equity firm Prysm Capital, valuing the company at $2 billion.

Clear Street has developed a cloud-native prime brokerage and clearing system from the ground up, featuring integrations with central clearinghouses and API development. The company said that it wants to optimize returns and minimize risk and cost for clients by offering comprehensive services to clear, custody, and finance US equities and options.

Clear Street serves around 200 institutional investors and hundreds of smaller active trading entities as clients. While the company didnā€™t give specific metrics, it said that it had experienced a 500% increase in institutional clients, while daily transaction volume grew over 300% and financing balances rose nearly 150%. Clear Street claims its prime clearing platform currently handles 2.5% of the gross notional US equities volume, translating to roughly $10 billion in daily notional trading value for US equities.

Fresh Finds

  • Effy offers science-based templates for quick, professional performance reviews and AI-generated insights to save time on report preparation.

  • Seamless integration with Slack and Teams allows employee-friendly submission of reviews and automated reminders.

  • Continuous collection of employee feedback and tips for developmental conversations fosters employee engagement and growth through meaningful 1:1s.

Memes and Other Things

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