Citi Ventures has backed its first digital asset management firm while Taiwan’s largest property warehousing developer has formed a joint venture (JV) with Malaysia’s state pension fund Employees Provident Fund (EPF). Separately, Tencent has acquired a minority stake in Polish game development studio Grub Entertainment.
Citi Ventures, Accel invest in Xalts
Citi Ventures has made its first investment in digital asset management in Xalts worth $6 million, alongside Silicon Valley venture capital firm Accel, according to a statement on Friday. Web3 blockchain network firm Polygon’s co-founder Sandeep Nailwal and other hedge fund managers also invested in the round.
According to separate ACRA filings accessed by DealStreetAsia, Accel held a total of 3,973 preference shares of Xalts’ Singapore-registered entity at a price of around $4,499,899.26 as of July 26 while Citi Ventures held 883 preference shares at a price of $1,000,103.46 as of September 28.
Xalts, founded this year by former HSBC and Meta executives and headquartered in Hong Kong, offers institutional investors and clients with asset management, issuance platforms and treasury solutions.
“There is a lot of pent-up demand from institutional investors to participate in the digital asset class. However, a lot of institutions we are speaking with are not able to access this ecosystem directly,” said Xalts CEO Supreet Kaur in the release.
Citi Ventures, the investment arm of Citi, has invested in over 100 startups across areas such as fintech to DLT and digital assets since it was founded 12 years ago. Palo Alto-based Accel, founded in 1983, works with startups in seed, early and growth-stage investments. It has invested in major tech companies such as Facebook, Slack and Spotify.
Tencent picks up minority stake in Grub
Chinese Internet giant Tencent Holdings has made a minority stake investment in Grub Entertainment, a Poland-based independent game development studio, according to an announcement by the gaming firm.
Tencent aims to form “long-lasting ties” with the studio as well as speed up the growth of the firm via a minority investment, per the release. The Warsaw-based firm did not disclose the details of the investment, but said in the release that it will maintain its creative and operational autonomy after the investment.
Founded in 2020 by four AAA game programmers — Grzegorz Michalak, Kamil Misiowiec, Paweł Siech and Karol Szyszka — the firm plans to deliver its cyberpunk-themed, first-person shooter game, Deadlink, in an early-access version on October 18. AAA games refer to video games developed by major firms with massive budgets.
Taiwan’s ALP forms JV with Malaysia’s EPF
Taiwan’s Ally Logistic Property (ALP), has formed a joint venture (JV) with Malaysia’s state pension fund Employees Provident Fund (EPF) to build a logistic hub, according to a company announcement.
The EPF will invest up to 70% stake in the JV, named ALP BR (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, while the remaining 30% of stake will be held by ALP, per the release.
Located at Bandar Bukit Raja, Klang, in the state of Selangor, the logistic hub will be equipped with an Automated Storage and Retrieval System (ASRA), a logistic tech solution that leverages computer- and robot-aided system to help manage and optimise the logistics flow, per the announcement.
The hub, located on 27 acres of freehold land, is slated to complete by the third quarter of 2024. Upon completion, ALP BR will lease out the entire warehouse to ALP under a 15-year master lease agreement. “The asset will provide the EPF with the opportunity to invest in prime quality logistics assets and generate stable rental income for both the EPF and ALP,” said EPF CEO Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan in the release.