<article>SBI Group, Sygnum and Azimut have set up a $75-million venture capital fund to invest in blockchain and crypto startups across Europe and Southeast Asia, according to a joint statement.</article>

SBI Group, Sygnum and Azimut have set up a $75-million venture capital fund to invest in blockchain and crypto startups across Europe and Southeast Asia, according to a joint statement.
The fund brings three major companies in financial services and cryptocurrencies together to seek emerging technology in the space. SBI Group is a Japanese fintech conglomerate and private equity firm with $5.55 billion in assets under management. Switzerland-based Sygnum is the world’s first digital asset bank. Azimut is one of Europe’s top independent asset managers based in Italy.
The fund is incorporated as a variable capital company in Singapore and targets pre-Series A and Series A startups developing blockchain or distributed ledger technology (DLT) infrastructure, decentralised finance (DeFi) solutions and regulatory technology tools.
“DLT and digital assets are at the inflection point of mainstream adoption, and they have the potential to reduce inefficiencies and unlock new capabilities across several sectors, such as financial services and supply chain management&#8230; The fund enables us to bring our expertise and networks in the sector to accelerate the growth of promising digital assets companies and to shape the future of financial services,” said SBI Ven Capital CEO and managing director Ryosuke Hayashi.
“We are witnessing several innovative solutions emerging from digital asset companies, especially in decentralised applications, regulatory technology, digital exchanges, and tokenization. These solutions have the potential to facilitate trusted and secure transmission of information and value, empower businesses to access untapped pools of capital at lower cost, and democratise financial inclusion,” said Gerald Goh, co-founder and CEO Singapore of Sygnum.
The crypto and blockchain sector has seen a surge in investments in recent months.
According to Pitchbook, over $17 billion worth of investments were made into blockchain, DLT and cryptocurrencies globally, more than five times that of 2019. Fundraising rounds are also hitting record highs. Blockdata states that seven of the 10 largest funding rounds of all time in blockchain, DLT and cryptocurrency were closed this year, underscoring the growth trajectory of this sector.

SBI Group, Sygnum and Azimut have set up a $75 million venture capital fund to invest in blockchain and crypto startups.

SBI Group, Sygnum, Azimut set up $75m fund to back blockchain, crypto firms

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SBI Group, Sygnum, Azimut set up $75m fund to back blockchain, crypto firms

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