Crypto firm Animoca locks in more funding even after KKR backs off

ANIMOCA Brands, a crypto investor and game developer, completed another round of financing that left its mulitbillion-dollar valuation intact even after investment firm KKR decided not to take part.

The company said on Tuesday (Jul 12) that it raised about US$75 million, adding on to a previously announced funding round in January. The funding implies a valuation of US$5.9 billion for Animoca, about the same as the round at the beginning of the year. That's notable at a time when the crypto market's recent rout and series of crises have left other companies reeling. Animoca develops games such as The Sandbox and is an investor in more than 340 projects, including Axie Infinity, OpenSea and Dapper Labs.

KKR had been in discussions to invest in the funding round, but decided to withdraw in part because of market conditions, according to a person with knowledge of the matter who asked not to be identified because the matter hasn't been made public. Digital assets as a whole have lost about US$2 trillion in value since last fall and the market has been rocked by the implosion of the Terra blockchain and collapse of several businesses, including hedge fund Three Arrows Capital and crypto broker Voyager Digital.

The raise is an addition to the US$359 million in funding at US$5 billion valuation that was previously announced on Jan 18. Investors in the new tranche included Liberty City Ventures, Kingsway Capital, Alpha Wave Ventures and 10T, Animoca said. The additional funding was finalised after the TerraUSD stablecoin collapse in May, and that event didn't lead to a change in valuation or terms, Yat Siu, co-founder of Animoca, said in an email. Investors had a chance to back out if they wanted before the funding was closed, according to Animoca.

"It demonstrates that there is capital in the market and interest in the sector," Siu said. "There are clearly deals to be made."

Animoca plans to use the capital for strategic acquisitions, investments and product development, among other things. Animoca was the most active investor in crypto in the first half of this year, with more than 50 investments, according to crypto mergers-and-acquisitions adviser Architect Partners. BLOOMBERG