October 7, 2021

The accelerated progress of the "Two Zones" construction is attracting an increasing number of global high-end resources to settle in Beijing. On October 15, Beijing SoftBank Asia Credit Capital Investment Management Co., Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Japan's SoftBank Ventures Asia, registered and opened its offices in the Beijing Sino-Japan Innovation Cooperation Demonstration Zone. This is the first wholly Japanese-owned fund management company in China and marks a significant strategic move by SoftBank Ventures Asia, one of the world's top financial institutions, in the Chinese market.

The investment team of SoftBank Ventures Asia has accumulated extensive experience in equity investments and finalized a large number of successful investment cases. Since its establishment in 2000, the team has successfully raised 16 funds totaling over USD one billion and invested in 233 technology and internet companies in Asia, the United States, Israel, and Europe.

SoftBank Asia Credit Capital stated that it will assist Beijing in building a benchmark city for global digital economy. Through SoftBank's global investments in artificial intelligence companies, SoftBank Asia Credit Capital will promote the establishment of R&D centers in Beijing and empower the digital transformation of enterprises. Under SoftBank's coordination, the new entity's portfolio companies can actively participate in the smart city projects of Daxing District, contributing to urban upgrades. For instance, SenseTime, an AI company invested by SoftBank, provides a visual hub platform based on AI-enabled visual recognition for city-wide full scenarios.

At the same time, SoftBank Asia Credit Capital will support innovation and breakthroughs in China's domestic chip industry. With SoftBank's active global layout in the global semiconductor field, the invested companies are dedicated to achieving independence and control in domestic chips production. These efforts will not only help Daxing District introduce high-end, hard and core chip companies but also assist existing semiconductor firms in the district to quickly achieve technological breakthroughs and performance growth. In addition, SoftBank Asia Credit Capital will promote the establishment of an international innovation and entrepreneurship demonstration platform in Beijing. Leveraging its years of close cooperation with top global incubators, the company plans to set up a professional startup accelerator to incubate high-quality entrepreneurship and innovation projects in the demonstration zone.

(Source: Beijing Daily)