The Web3 company Animoca Brands Corporation Limited (Animoca Brands), based in Hong Kong, announced that it had invested JP150 million ($112.8 million) into LMI GROUP Inc. through its strategic subsidiary, Animoca Brands Japan (LMI).
According to a statement released by Animoca Brands, the investment will help LMI to expand its reach and speed up its growth in the Japanese retail media market.
Using its extensive experience in both physical and virtual shop design, LMI, whose predecessor company was founded in 1987, offers and develops a variety of solutions for retail businesses.
LMI has been utilizing real-world data in commercial and real-life space to maximize space value in recent years and has been reflecting online customer data collection and utilization to offline real shops.
Japan and the rest of the world are expecting the retail media sector to expand as the post-COVID recovery picks up speed.
Utilizing LMI’s capabilities and network as a preeminent solution provider in this industry, Animoca Brands Japan considers LMI to be a valuable partner to create new value and contribute to the overall development of the retail industry. LMI has knowledge of and experience in the retail space.
“We are grateful for this investment opportunity into LMI, which has established itself as a leading promoter of Digital Transformation (DX) in the retail sector, and is now eyeing an initial public offering (IPO),” said Kyoya Okazawa, Co-founder and Chief Investment Officer of Animoca Brands Japan.
“Synergies with the Animoca Brands ecosystem will be identified to help LMI to promote ways to reinvigorate the retail sector. We believe that Web3 can contribute enormously to productivity in Japan’s retail sector, leading to job creation and wage increases, and we look forward to exploring all these opportunities together,” he added.
Shunsuke Nagai, President of LMI Group Inc, said, “We are greatly honored to have Animoca Brands invest in us. We have reason to believe that real-world retail data underestimates the recovery of the retail industry, and the rediscovery and utilization of that value could create new possibilities for the retail industry and connect improved productivity with wage increases”
LMI is an innovative team of professionals with a range of specialties who work to advance the market in each of their respective niches as well as the industry as a whole and consumer engagement.
By utilizing real-world data in the areas of commercial space and living space, the company seeks to develop a new value for all customers.
Animoca Brands Japan, founded in 2021, was created to support the international Web3 strategies of Japanese intellectual property and content owners, including major publishers, brands, education, sports teams, athletes, artists, and game companies.
By offering a platform that combines IPs and blockchain technology and helps IP holders create their own ecosystem using a full stack of Web3 services, the company builds a bridge between Japanese IPs and their international fans.
