# Top 25 Legal Startup Investors in Japan in May 2026 ## SMBC Venture Capital - Type: VC Fund - Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan - Relevant deals: 3 - Stages: Series A, Series B - Focus: Health Care, Information Technology, Software Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) and its group companies offer a broad range of financial services centered on banking. They are also engaged in the leasing, securities, credit card, investment, mortgage securitization, venture capital and other credit related businesses. The following lists the activities of SMBC, its subsidiaries andaffiliates in the various business segments. ## UB Ventures - Type: VC Fund - Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan - Relevant deals: 2 - Stages: Seed, Series B - Focus: Information Technology, Software, Task Management UB Ventures is venture capital firm. ## Nissay Capital - Type: VC Fund - Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan - Relevant deals: 2 - Stages: Seed, Series A - Focus: Health Care, Internet, Medical Nissay Capital is a venture capital Company specializing in seed, start-up, growth capital, middle stage, and later stage investment. ## 500 Startups Japan - Type: VC Fund - Location: San Francisco, California, United States - Relevant deals: 2 - Stages: Seed, Series A - Focus: Internet, Software, Internet of Things 500 Startups is the most active seed VC in the world. 500 Startups Japan is a $35M regional fund focusing on Japan. ## Monex Ventures - Type: VC Fund - Location: Minato, Chiba, Japan - Relevant deals: 2 - Stages: Seed, Series A - Focus: Software, Financial Services, Information Technology Monex Ventures is a venture capital firm based in Japan that finances seed and early stage investments in startup companies. ## SPARX Group - Type: VC Fund - Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Series B, Series A - Focus: Software, Artificial Intelligence, Information Technology SPARX Group Co., Ltd. is an independent Asia-based equity and credit asset management services and Asian fund financial specialist with offices in Tokyo, Hong Kong and Seoul for global institutional and individual investors, including financial advisors and financial planners, with alternative strategies (including activist, short-enabled, private equity and quantitative and fund-of-funds) and mutual funds (through SPARX Asia Funds such as SPARX Asia Pacific Opportunities Fund, SPARX Asia Pacific Equity Income Fund, SPARX Japan Smaller Companies Fund and SPARX Japan Fund) managed or sub-advised by SPARX Asset Management Co. Ltd., SPARX Asia Investment Advisors Limited and Cosmo Asset Management Co., Ltd. ## Deep30 - Type: VC Fund - Location: Kuramae, Tokyo, Japan - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Seed, Series B - Focus: Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Content Deep30 is specializing in AI technologies such as deep learning that consists of individuals connected to the University of Tokyo’s Matsuo Lab, which is famous for AI research. ## ANOBAKA - Type: VC Fund - Location: Shibuya, Kanagawa, Japan - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Seed, Series A - Focus: Software, Content, Food and Beverage ANOBAKA is a Tokyo-based venture capital firm with rich group resources to add value to seed-stage startups. ANOBAKA actively invests in and supports startups aiming to be a global leader in the innovative Internet business and promising to greatly grow up in the future. ANOBAKA's investment focuses on fledgling seed-stage startups. Inaddition to investment financing, ANOBAKA provides founders with a variety of business support such as development consulting by our engineers, sales support, and international marketing support. ## Coral Capital - Type: VC Fund - Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Seed, Series A - Focus: Information Technology, Software, Internet Coral Capital is a seed stage venture capital firm in Japan. ## Takato Hiroshi - Type: Angel - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Angel - Focus: Health Care, Legal, Beauty Takato Hiroshi - CEO @ M0mentum ## BEENEXT - Type: VC Fund - Location: Singapore, Central Region, Singapore - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Seed, Series A, Series B - Focus: Software, E-Commerce, FinTech BEENEXT is a Venture Capital fund managed by serial entrepreneurs that focuses on assisting founders with its operational experience, network, trust, unique perspectives, and the capital. The team invests in early-stage tech start-ups that are focused on building the new digital platforms driven by the data network. BEENEXT aims to establish aplatform of founders, by the founders and for the founders across the globe, primarily in South East Asia, India and Japan. Since its establishment in 2015, the team has invested in over 180 companies globally. ## VOYAGE VENTURES - Type: VC Fund - Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Seed, Series A - Focus: Software, Internet, Content Voyage Ventures is the venture capital arm of Voyage Group specializing in seed and early-stage investments. The firm seeks to make investments in the internet and mobile internet industry. It invests from JPY1 million ($.01million) to JPY to 10 million ($.12 million) in its portfolio companies. The firm typically invests in Japan, China, and othergrowing Asian markets. Voyage Ventures, Inc., formerly known as EC Navi Ventures Company, was founded on March 25, 2011, and is based in Tokyo, Japan. ## MUFG Bank - Type: VC Fund - Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Debt Financing, Series A - Focus: Financial Services, Energy, Renewable Energy MUFG Bank is Japan's largest bank. ; MUFG ## Chihiro Asano - Type: Angel - Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Seed, Angel, Series A - Focus: Content, Legal, FinTech Chief Technology Officer at Money Forward. ## Taki Toshio - Type: Angel - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Seed, Angel - Focus: Legal, Finance, Education Taki Toshio is the Founder at Money Forward . ## Paul Kuo - Type: Angel - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Seed, Angel, Series A - Focus: Reservations, Travel, SaaS Paul Kuo - Director - Board of Directors @ Tamecco ## Incubate Fund - Type: VC Fund - Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Seed, Series A - Focus: Software, Information Technology, E-Commerce Incubate Fund is an independent early-stage venture capital that specializes in providing capital to technology startups at the seed stage. The firm built a portfolio of over 300 companies in Asia, taking 12 companies to public and 20 companies to M&A exit since 2010. ## Fundinno - Type: VC Fund - Location: Higashi-shinagawa, Tokyo, Japan - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Equity Crowdfunding, Product Crowdfunding - Focus: Information Technology, Content, Health Care Fundinno is an equity investment crowdfunding platform. ## Naoki Aoyagi - Type: Angel - Location: San Francisco, California, United States - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Seed, Angel, Series A - Focus: Internet, Fashion, Software Naoki Aoyagi is a Senior Vice President at GREE, Inc. and Chief Executive Officer of GREE International, Inc. He joined GREE, Inc. in March 2006 from Deutsche Bank, where he had specialized in tech and media sector IPOs and M&A advisory work. At GREE, Aoyagi oversaw the Company's partnership with KDDI and its IPO before leading thedevelopment of GREE’s global operations, a role he continues today. Aoyagi earned a bachelor's degree in policy management from Keio University in 2002. ## Seio Nagami - Type: Angel - Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Seed, Series A, Angel - Focus: Task Management, SaaS, Information Technology Seio Nagami ## Shinsuke Mori - Type: Angel - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Seed - Focus: Legal, Task Management, Artificial Intelligence Shinsuke Mori - Joint Researcher and Technical Advisor @ LegalForce Japan ## Future Venture Capital - Type: VC Fund - Location: Kyoto, Kyoto, Japan - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Seed, Series A - Focus: Information Technology, Manufacturing, Health Care Future Venture Capital Co., Ltd. is a venture capital firm specializing in early stage investment. The firm invests in diversified investment in a broad range of industrial sectors. It seeks to invest in Japan. The firm prefers to be the lead investor in its portfolio companies. Future Venture Capital Co., Ltd. was founded in 1998 and is based inKyoto, Japan with offices in Tokyo, Aomori, Iwate, Yamagata, Kanazawa, Mie, Sakai, Kobe, and Ehime. ## Mizuho Capital - Type: VC Fund - Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Series A, Series B - Focus: Information Technology, Software, Internet Mizuho is the venture capital firm affiliated to Mizuho Bank, the second-largest Japanese bank in terms of assets. The firm has headquarters in Tokyo.The firm has ¥49.6 billion JPY under management, focusing on information technology and biotechnology investments. Over 600 Mizuho companies have gone public. According to Nikkei, Mizuho is thefifth-largest venture capital firm in Japan.Mizuho Capital was formed in 2002 by the merger of Fujigin Capital, Tokyo Venture Capital and IBJ Investment. Three firms were subsidiaries of Fuji Bank, Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank and the Industrial Bank of Japan respectively. ## Salesforce Ventures - Type: VC Fund - Location: San Francisco, California, United States - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Series B, Series A, Series C - Focus: Software, SaaS, Information Technology 100% invested in enterprise cloud companies. ## Sansei Capital Investment - Type: VC Fund - Location: Koto, Tokyo, Japan - Relevant deals: 1 - Stages: Series A, Series B - Focus: Content, Software, Medical Sansei Capital provides portfolio management, corporate management support, and financing services. # About Shizune Shizune.co is an investor database. Core features: - 48,091 startup investors (angels, VCs, accelerators, and others) - Email, phone, LinkedIn (for intros), socials, and other contact data - Updated daily from public funding news - CSV and Excel export The User can access the full database FOR FREE after signing up: shizune.co