As interest in metaverses and play-to-earn platforms is vanishing, leading VC of the segment, Animoca Brands, is yet again forced to scale back its ambitions.
Animoca Brands cuts its metaverse fund target to $800 million
According to an article by Reuters, top-notch gaming developer and VC investing firm Animoca Brands decided to cut the target size of its metaverse fund for the second time in a row.
Hong Kong-based blockchain gaming developer Animoca Brands has cut its target for its so-called metaverse fund to $800 million. Animoca Brands said in November that it was working on a new fund with a target of $2 billion. Reuters https://t.co/UYM3cd39Re
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) March 24, 2023
In November 2022, the firm was going to raise $2 billion to fund a new generation of metaverse builders. However, it was forced to reduce its plans to $1 billion.
Today, Reuters reported another 20% cut: now Animoca Brands is only trying to secure $800 million. In total, that means 60% dropdown compared to its initial fundraising target.
As covered by U.Today previously, in 2022, Animoca Brands was the second most active investor in crypto. Surpassed by Coinbase Ventures only, it managed to take part in 238 funding rounds of various stages.
Hype is over, is money leaving metaverse segment?
Animoca Brands is far from alone in its "bearish" processes in metaverse funding. In February 2023, Republic, the third largest equity crowdfunding platform in the USA, cancelled its $75 million metaverse fund.
This decision was made due to increased regulatory scrutiny and a recent SEC crackdown on cryptocurrency services.
Also, metaverse and VR/AR tech plaform Engage decided to remove its stocks from Euronext Dublin Stock Exchange by April 19, 2023.
Alex Dovbnya
Yuri Molchan
Godfrey Benjamin