Chinese VC firm pledges $10B fund to support Web3 startups

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GBA Capital, a venture capital (VC) firm based in China, has confirmed plans to launch a $10 billion fund to support local Web3 companies in early growth stages.

The VC firm made the announcement at the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Digital Economy Development Conference with key industry stakeholders in attendance. In his speech, GBA Capital Chairman Haolong Li disclosed that the fund would be pivotal in transforming the Greater Bay Area into “the world’s meta-asset capital.”

Attaining the title will be no mean feat for GBA Capital, but Li remarks that combining existing government partnerships will be vital in achieving the lofty objectives.

While full details about the proposed funds are sparse, Li’s speech at the conference stated that the capital will back startups building solutions with blockchain technology and
central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). Other areas of interest for GBA Capital are firms exploring metaverse technologies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

Currently, it is unclear whether GBA Capital will fund startups outside the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. However, the decision to establish conference tours outside of the region could spur the fund to support firms in other jurisdictions.

“The conference will bring together global leaders, industry experts, and innovators to discuss the future development direction and opportunities of the global digital economy,” read the announcement.

“In addition, the conference will also hold meta-asset global tours in Japan, Singapore, Dubai, Silicon Valley, Europe, and other places.”

GBA Capital, backed by China’s National Engineering Laboratory and the Asia Pacific Investment Bank, has a streak of investing in emerging technologies with a keen focus on promoting the “digital economy.”

“We aim to integrate the industrial clusters, capital resources, and corporate resources and policy advantages to provide comprehensive support and services to enterprises,” said GBA Capital on its official website.

A spike in Web3 projects

Since 2021, the Greater Bay Area has seen a spike in the number of Web3 projects operating in the region. Buoyed largely by Hong Kong’s positive stance toward the industry, the area has recorded a trove of relocations with regulatory clarity and access to banking services guaranteed by local regulators.

Going forward, pundits have described the Digital Economy Development Conference as a valiant attempt to send the digital economy of the Greater Bay Area to new heights. Apart from doubling down on Web3, attendees to the conference hinted at exploring artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum computing to improve the region’s digital economy.

Watch: Web3 will change our lives, nChain CIO Christine Leong explains how