WealthNavi, the Japan-based developer of a digital asset management platform, raised approximately $41m in debt and equity financing yesterday from investors including electronics producer Sony’s Innovation Fund, The Bridge reported.
SMBC Venture Capital, Mizuho Capital and DBJ Capital, respective subsidiaries of Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC), Mizuho Bank and Development Bank of Japan, also took part in the ¥1.5bn ($13.7m) equity portion of the round.
Global Brain and Mirai Creation Fund, which is backed by SMBC and carmaker Toyota, filled out the equity investors. The $27.4m debt portion was supplied by undisclosed financial institutions.
WealthNavi has built a robo-advisor platform that uses artificial intelligence to manage investments and assets on behalf of its users.
The company will use the funding to enhance not only its robo-advisor platform but also Mametasu, an app that connects to a user’s credit cards and automatically takes change from purchases and puts it in their savings accounts.
The round comes after WealthNavi signed a commercial partnership agreement in December 2017 with Sony Bank, a financial services subsidiary of Sony, in which the bank will supply brokerage services and mediate investment contracts between WealthNavi and its customers.
SMBC Venture Capital, DBJ Capital and Mizuho Capital joined Mitsubishi UFJ Capital and Gree Ventures, subsidiaries of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and digital media company Gree, as well as Infinity Venture Partners to provide approximately $4.8m of funding for the company in 2015.
WealthNavi subsequently raised another $14.5m in a late 2016 series B round featuring Mizuho Capital, DBJ Capital, SMBC Venture Capital, Infinity Venture Partners and SBI Investment, a subsidiary of financial services provider SBI Holdings.