World Innovation Lab raises $521m for US-Japan fund

The fundraise, confirmed in a recent filing, represents a below-target final close for the fund, which had initially set a $600 million target according to a prior disclosure. The vehicle, known as WiL Fund II, reached a first close in June last year at $236 million.

Fund II aims to help start-ups bridge US and Asian markets by making deployments in a range of JPY100 million ($913,000) to JPY2 billion in sectors such as e-commerce, robotics, and financial technology. Investments to date include Coincheck, a Japan-based bitcoin trading and payment services company.

Daigas Group, which confirmed an investment in the fund earlier this year, emphasized an interest in supporting WiL with internet-of-things (IoT) and artificial intelligence projects going forward. Other LP backers include ANA Holdings, KDDI Corp, Mizuho Financial Group, Nissan Motor, Sony, and Suzuki Motor.

WiL was founded in 2013 and maintains bases in both Japan and the US. Its debut fund closed in 2015 with $353 million in commitments. The fund has mostly targeted Japan-based companies, including IoT player Soracom, and game developer Gumi, which recently secured $30 million for its own VC fund.

WiL has also contributed to at least two rounds for Mercari, a peer-to-peer marketplace operator that is said to be Japan's first start-up to achieve a valuation in excess of $1 billion. Earlier this month, the company filed for a JPY130.5 billion IPO on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. 

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• Topics
• North Asia
• North America
• Fundraising
• Venture
• Japan
• USA
• World Innovation Lab (WiL)
• Technology