Japan-based crowdfunding service operator Campfire has secured ¥2.2bn ($20m) in a series C round that included several corporate investors.
The participants included diversified trading group Itochu, consulting firm Alliance Partners, marketing technology provider FreakOut Holdings, fashion brand World, department store chain operator Parco and media companies Search Field and Ceres.
Telecommunications group KDDI’s Open Innovation Fund III (KOIF3) also took part, as did Saison Ventures and SB Players, respective subsidiaries of payment services provider Credit Saison and telecommunications conglomerate SoftBank, financial services firm Ogaki Kyoritsu Bank and venture capital firm Global Brain.
Founded in 2011, Campfire runs an online platform allows users to raise funds through donations and loans. It has so far supported more than 21,000 crowdfunding projects.
The company intends to use the funding to expand outside Japan and strengthen its reward-based crowdfunding business. It has raised a total of almost $31m in funding, it said.
Freakout had previously joined internet companies GMO Internet and DeNA, online advertising agency Septeni Holdings, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group’s SMBC Venture Capital unit, D4V, East Ventures, ISGS Investment Works, Suneight Investment and various angel investors to invest $2.8m in Campfire in 2017.
