Sony Network Communications and Startale Labs to Launch Joint Blockchain Venture

Wiziin Earmarks $500K Pre-Seed Funding for Blockchain InvestmentWiziin, a Vietnamese startup specializing in venture investment management, has secured $500,000 in pre-seed funding, which it plans to use to accelerate its efforts in blockchain technology investment.Photo by Peter Nguyen on UnsplashBroad networkAt the heart of Wiziin’s primary objective — to bridge the divide between investors and founders — lies the firm’s blockchain-based platform. The Wiziin platform is specifically tailored to venture investors with a focus on digital assets.Wiziin is headed up by venture capitalist Tien Nguyen and serial entrepreneur Thong Dang. The firm was established in 2020, with a view towards playing a part in what it foresees as a revolution in investment dynamics, particularly within the Asia Pacific (APAC) region. The company’s network encompasses more than 200 investors and an array of over 5,000 raised-fund companies. The company believes that this positions it to become a transformative force in the investment landscape within the region.“The established norms of venture capital funding have long followed conventional methodologies,” commented Thong Dang, Wiziin Co-Founder. “This infusion of funding serves as a catalyst for our ongoing endeavors in emerging blockchain technology, with the ultimate aim of disrupting and revolutionizing the industry. Tokenization of assets and the integration of smart contracts will form the bedrock of our innovative approach to venture capital,” he added.Homerun.clubCentral to Wiziin’s trajectory is the development of an investment platform named “Homerun.club.” This platform is engineered to foster co-investment experiences within blockchain ecosystems for individual investors.Through the elimination of intermediaries, Wiziin is striving to democratize funding access, unleashing global empowerment for entrepreneurs and inviting a more diverse spectrum of investors.The universality of blockchain technology shatters geographical limitations, enabling start-ups like Wiziin to bring investors and entrepreneurs together from every corner of the globe. This holds profound potential for startups and investors situated in expanding markets, and markets that have historically been underserved by conventional approaches to venture capital funding and investment.“While our platform operates within a decentralized framework, the importance of user verification cannot be understated, serving as both a regulatory compliance measure and a safeguard for investor interests,” elaborated Thong Dang.Dang added: “In tandem, we’re actively seeking institutional funding in the upcoming months to further fortify the platform. This strategic step will usher in a collaborative fundraising endeavor between our project and its vibrant community, fostering mutual growth and resounding success.”DAOs and start-up fundingWiziin’s approach is just one element in the ongoing shift towards blockchain-based start-up finance innovation. Many in the crypto space have also put forward DAOs or decentralized autonomous organizations, as an agent for further disruption in this area.DAOs also leverage blockchain technology, and their use can be helpful in cutting conventional venture capital firms out of the enterprise funding process. Furthermore, they can be used to cut through unwieldy regulation relative to start-up funding.With the conventional approach to start-up finance, only accredited investors gain access to early-stage opportunities. Individual investors, regardless of their net worth, can participate in a DAO-based approach to financing. The approach facilitates broader inclusion while having the effect of increasing liquidity as well.

DWF Labs, a Singapore-based crypto sector investment firm and market maker, has decided to move its headquarters to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Alongside its current offices and headquarters in Singapore, the company has established offices in Dubai, Hong Kong, Switzerland, South Korea and the British Virgin Islands (BVI).Photo by Adnan Uddin on PexelsFocusing on MENA growthIn an X post published on Dec. 2, DWF Labs Co-Founder Andrei Grachev announced the change of headquarters location from Singapore to Abu Dhabi, stating: “In order to build a strong presence in the Middle East and run more RWA [Real World Assets] and financial services there, @DWFLabs is moving the headquarter to Abu Dhabi.” Grachev added that more news in this regard will be announced soon, advising stakeholders to stay tuned regarding the matter. In the past, the DWF Labs founder has highlighted the significance of the Middle Eastern market.  Earlier this year, he suggested that the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) market is “one of the fastest growing markets in the world,” while commenting on the firm’s partnership with the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC), a Dubai-based ecosystem for blockchain and distributed ledger technologies.  That isn’t the firm’s only partnership within the UAE. In September, it emerged that it had partnered with Abu Dhabi-based Web3 venture capital firm Klumi Ventures. The firms intend to collaborate in relation to the offering of strategic crypto advisory services in the UAE, investments and market making, market education and in the facilitation of over-the-counter (OTC) deals and crypto asset options. Strategic positioningAt the time, Grachev said that the two firms were “strategically positioned to drive the digital transformation in the UAE,” with the ability to empower both new market entrants and established institutions to succeed within the digital assets arena. It appears that Grachev has been spending a significant amount of time in Abu Dhabi of late. On Sept. 25, he posted on X that he had arrived in Abu Dhabi and was “cooking something special for the industry.” He followed up on that more recently, posting a selfie on X on Nov. 25 with the caption “Chef cooking in Abu Dhabi.” The authorities in both Dubai and Abu Dhabi, as well as Singapore, have all been working towards attracting crypto startups to their cities. All of them have had some success in that regard, although DWF Labs’ move away from Singapore indicates how competitive this environment is and how mobile crypto startups are. ADGM crypto hubIn the case of Abu Dhabi, most crypto sector activity has happened within the city’s international financial centre (ADGM), which has attracted projects such as the Kaia DLT Foundation, stablecoin issuer Paxos, blockchain infrastructure firm Blockdaemon, crypto custodian Liminal, crypto venture capital fund Token Bay Capital and many others. DWF Labs was first founded in Singapore in 2022. It has established ecosystem funds and grants relative to projects such as EOS, Floki, Gala Chain, Klaytn and TON. Additionally, the firm has just announced the launch of a $20 million fund focused on meme coin projects.

EMERGE Group, a leading Southeast Asian marketing technology firm specializing in intellectual property (IP) and gaming partnerships, has forged a strategic alliance with TZ APAC in an effort to drive Web3 gaming relative to the Tezos layer one blockchain. Singapore-based TZ APAC is a Web3 ecosystem builder dedicated to advancing the Web3 ecosystem on the Tezos blockchain by empowering founders, creators and developers. It’s also the Asian adoption entity supported by the Tezos Foundation with a mandate to garner adoption of the Tezos blockchain within the region. EMERGE is also a Singapore-based entity that established itself during the pandemic.Photo by Rodion Kutsaiev on UnsplashPositioning Tezos as preferred gaming blockchainNews of the partnership was publicized recently within "The Baking Sheet," a bulletin published by an independent not-for-profit entity, Tezos Commons. The primary focus of this partnership is to offer marketing solutions and publishing partnership support. EMERGE Group, known for its expertise and influential network, including partnerships with Moonton, Singtel and Shopback, aims to position Tezos as the preferred blockchain platform for the gaming community. Leveraging advertising inventories and critical IPs, EMERGE Group intends to facilitate the seamless onboarding of game studios onto the Tezos blockchain. Tezos, renowned for its open-source blockchain emphasizing upgradability, participation and smart contract safety, joins forces with EMERGE Group, which has previously established strategic alliances with industry leaders like Nvir World and Infinite Loop Media. This partnership is seeking to make an impact within the gaming industry, harnessing the potential of blockchain technology. Jason Lim, responsible for business development (gaming) at TZ APAC, commented on the partnership:“With this collaboration, TZ APAC can now rely on a partner that shares the same goal — to empower the gaming community with the relevant tools, resources, and network to succeed. Builders, gamers, and ecosystem partners can stand to benefit from the marriage of full-suite support provided by TZ APAC and the marketing prowess of EMERGE Group.”  EMERGE Group co-founder and CEO Roy Kek was similarly enthused, stating that the partnership reflected the firm’s expertise in the Web3 gaming space. Bridging Web2 to Web3The collaborative effort is designed to create a bridge between Web2 and Web3 technologies, enhancing the overall gaming experience. By fostering a supportive environment for game developers and capitalizing on Tezos' blockchain capabilities, the partnership aims to deliver a frictionless onboarding experience.  The collaboration between EMERGE Group and TZ APAC signifies a proactive move towards the integration of gaming into the Web3 ecosystem on Tezos. In the past, gaming giant Ubisoft has leaned on Tezos in providing in-game items for some of its gaming titles. The project has partnered with Google Cloud in an effort to enable Google Cloud customers to build Web3 applications on the blockchain. It’s still early days for Web3 gaming and with that, this partnership is seeking to advance gaming development on Tezos.