HK accelerator Brinc lands US$130M funding led by Animoca Brands to foray into Web3

Hong Kong-based startup accelerator Brinc has closed its US$30 million Series B fundraise, besides a US$100 million for startup investments, led by local unicorn Animoca Brands.

As per a statement, Brinc will use the new capital to expand its platform across new locations and verticals.

“Brinc operates accelerator programmes, venture funds, and growing networks of corporate clients, investors, mentors, and distribution partners. Our networks leverage our accelerators and funds to gain visibility of exciting startups and make investments into the best deal flow across pre-seed, seed, and Series A+ stages either directly through programmes or indirectly through funds, all of which are currently designed around food, health, energy, climate deeptech, and blockchain. The new funding will be used to expand the number of accelerators and funds we have globally, providing more channels for our networks to access and invest in more high-quality startups,” Manav Gupta, founder and CEO of Brinc, told e27.

In addition, the capital will enable Brinc’s expansion into Web3, including the launch of new blockchain-focused accelerator programmes across culture, music, art, collectibles, gaming, decentralised finance and data.

Brinc will also support startups and corporates in developing blockchain ventures to integrate sustainability, inclusion and equitability into their business models.

Also Read: Hashed launches US$200M Fund II to back Web3 technologies

“During the process of closing [this round], we recognised that there was [an] opportunity to not only utilise the capital to support the development of Brinc’s core infrastructure (programmes, growing the talent base, scaling into new countries, expanding investments into marketing and other key areas) but also scale the amount of funding available to teams that come through our programs and launch dedicated Web3 focused programmes. Animoca Brands also came in as lead investor for the additional US$100 million for programme investments in addition to the US$30 million Series B round,” he added.

This investment strengthens the relationship between Brinc and Animoca Brands, who jointly unveiled the blockchain and NFT accelerator Launchpad Luna earlier this year. Its first cohort is in the process of closing investments into 30 Web3 companies, supporting founders with tokenisation, product development and fundraising.

The programme’s panel of mentors and experts include leading names in the blockchain industry, such as Binance, Dapper Labs, Enjin, and The Sandbox. Next year, Brinc and Animoca Brands plan to accelerate over 100 companies through LaunchPad Luna.

“Web3 technologies have the potential to democratise access to financial services and information, develop a more inclusive digital economy through aligned value capture mechanisms, and transform global business processes, just as the Internet did. Working with Animoca Brands to support leading companies in this space is an incredible opportunity. It underscores an increasing interest in utilising accelerators to access high-quality startup opportunities at scale,” Gupta remarked.

Yat Siu, the executive chairman and co-founder of Animoca Brands, commented: “Brinc is the leading name in startup acceleration for emerging markets and technologies, and its sights are set firmly on the future and sustainability. We share a common vision of an open future with blockchain adoption in traditional and growth sectors, and we look forward to the innovations that will emerge from its acceleration programmes.”

Founded in 2014, Brinc accelerates startups focused on IoT, blockchain technology, AI, connected hardware, drones, robotics, clean energy and food technology. Its portfolio contributes to improving food and water security, healthcare, climate change, urbanisation, connectivity, transportation and financial inclusion.

It has supported over 200 companies with founders from more than 35 countries. It currently operates 18 multi-disciplinary acceleration programmes across seven offices around the world.

Brinc also supports corporations with investment services, distributed innovation strategies, sourcing of new startups and technologies, as well as venture building Web 3.0 enabled businesses. Global corporations (Manulife, Huawei, Schneider Electric, Puma, Batelco, Merck, Omantel, Linrun Group, Zhihui Park), government organisations (Hong Kong Science Park, NEOM, MBRIF, Guangdong Soft-tech Park), Universities (HK City University, National University of Singapore) and venture funds (Artesian, LeverVC, Tamkeen, and EDB) have all run programmes with Brinc over the years.

In 2020, Gupta announced the accelerator’s mission to invest in more than 1,000 startups developing solutions to combat climate change and build a more inclusive and equitable society within the next five years.

Earlier this year, Brinc launched BrincArtesian, a Singapore fund manager, to provide LPs access to emerging market Series A-plus co-investment opportunities.

Also Read: ‘NFTs provide new ways to handle IP management, empower content creators’: Inmagine CEO Warren Leow

Applications for Brinc’s spring 2022 acceleration programme are now open. Interested startups can apply here.

Animoca Brands is a digital entertainment, blockchain, and gamification company. It develops and publishes a broad portfolio of products (the REVV token and SAND token); original games (The Sandbox, Crazy Kings, and Crazy Defense Heroes); and products utilising popular intellectual properties, including Formula 1, Disney, WWE, Power Rangers, MotoGP, and Doraemon). The firm has multiple subsidiaries, including The Sandbox, Blowfish Studios, Quidd, GAMEE, nWay, Pixowl, Bondly, and Lympo.

It has a portfolio of more than 100 investments in NFT-related companies and decentralised projects that contribute to building the open metaverse, including Axie Infinity, OpenSea, Dapper Labs (NBA Top Shot), Bitski, Harmony, Alien Worlds, and Star Atlas.

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Image Credit: Brinc