Japanese messaging giant LINE has launched a token venture fund with a capital commitment of $10 million via its recently established subsidiary called Unblock Ventures.
The publicly traded firm announced the fund in a release on Wednesday and said it aims to invest in blockchain startups in an effort to boost technological development.
While Unblock Ventures, incorporated in Hong Kong in July, will be the fund's manager, the $10 million capital is solely provided by LVC Corporation, another subsidiary of the LINE group.
The company said it expects to increase the total amount of the fund in the future based on the development of the blockchain industry.
Today's launch is part of LINE's wider push into the cryptocurrency space and comes just a month after it officially started the operation of its cryptocurrency trading platform called Bitbox.
It was also announced today that Bitbox has listed TRX - the native token of the June launched TRON blockchain - as the first crypto project listed on the exchange for trading following a review process conducted by a dedicated Bitbox committee.
Following the news, the 24-hour trading price of TRX jumped by 12 percent, based on data from CoinMarketCap.
In April, CoinDesk reported that LINE was also planning to launch a subsidiary based in South Korea that will focus on researching blockchain technology and developing potential applications.
The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is a media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies.
CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which invests in cryptocurrencies and blockchain startups.
Messaging Giant LINE Launches $10 Million Token Venture Fund
Published on Aug 15, 2018
by Coindesk | Published on Coinage
Coinage
Recent News
View All
Blockchain Bites: Bitcoin's Run, Uniswap's Hemorrhaging Value, Anchorage's Banking Bid
Bitcoin is nearing all-time highs in price and market cap last set three years ago.
Japan's megabanks to lead experiment with digital yen
We have, in order, Cheese Bank with a $3.3 million theft, Akropolis with its $2 million loss, Value DeFi with a whopping $6 million exploit and finally Origin Protocol's loss of $7 million.
Number of new Bitcoin addresses spikes amid growing FOMO
Japan's three largest banks, as part of a group of 30 private sector actors, are set to collaborate on an experiment with a digital yen.
Not just Wall Street: Quant trader explains why Bitcoin price is going up
Sam Trabucco, a quantitative trader at Alameda Research, believes four general factors are pushing up the price of Bitcoin.