Singapore-based platform for designer toys and collectibles Mighty Jaxx International has raised a funding of S$4.5 million ($3 million) led by South Korea’s KB Investment to conclude its pre-Series A funding round closed at a total amount of S$7 million.
The new tranche of funding was also joined by existing investor SGInnovate, as well as LA based VC Greycroft Partners, through the GC VR Gaming Tracker Fund, an investment fund dedicated to supporting companies across the virtual reality, augmented reality, video game and e-sport sectors.
The latest capital infusion comes a year after the initial investment of s$2.15 million, which was led by Eight Mercatus, a home-grown venture builder and startup growth platform. The funding was used to develop the first iteration of its patent-pending tech platform, MightyVerse, blending the physical and digital worlds.
The fresh injection of funds from KBI and Greycroft will help Mighty Jaxx further develop MightyVerse, Mighty Jaxx’s proprietary technology platform.
The financing equips the company with additional firepower as it ramps up its production for the second half of 2020 with the onboarding of heavyweight entertainment companies, Hasbro and ViacomCBS’s Nickelodeon (“Nickelodeon”), on new global licensing deals to produce collectibles from Hasbro and Nickelodeon’s umbrella of globally recognisable properties including Transformers and Spongebob Squarepants.
Founded in 2012, Mighty Jaxx is an urban culture company that designs and manufactures collectibles and lifestyle products in partnership with the greatest talents in the world as well as global brands such as Hasbro, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, Warner Brothers, DC Comics, Looney Tunes, Sesame Street, and more.
Since starting out in 2012, Mighty Jaxx claims to have shipped millions of products to collectors in over 60 countries worldwide. Over the past year, it has been vocal about its intentions to diversify its customer offerings and evolve together with the needs of its target audience.
“As a D2C company, we believe our collectors’ experience will not be complete if we do not bridge the phygital gap, and we hope to put ourselves in an ideal position to significantly scale the business by fusing technology with our unique design concepts,” said Mighty Jaxx founder and CEO Jackson Aw.
Commenting on its investment, KBI Principal Steven Hong said: “The past few years have seen huge growth in pop culture collectibles and Mighty Jaxx’s ability to consolidate global brands, artists and IPs across digital and physical products into multiple markets is unprecedented and has positioned them to be a global leader.”
KB Investment is a subsidiary of South Korean financial giant KB Holding. The firm has been investing in around 5 Southeast Asian companies a year since 2013, the fund will strengthen its foothold in the region.
Last year, it formed a joint venture fund with MDI Ventures, the corporate venture arm of the country’s largest telco operator Telkom Indonesia.
KB Holdings counts as one of the largest financial groups in Korea, claiming $400 billion AUM. The group presides over numerous subsidiaries and assets including KB Kookmin Bank, KB Kookmin Card, KB Investment & Securities, and KB Life Insurance.
More from my site
Singapore retains top spot as world’s most competitive economy
Grab layoffs highlight cost burden when startups grow heavier
Singapore’s Circles.Life lets go of employees despite recent fundraise
Singapore Launches Framework to Attract Investment Funds
AMTD, Xiaomi, Funding Societies, SP Group join Singapore digibank Race
Singapore’s EV Growth makes final close of debut fund at $250m