# Top 50 Social Media Startup Investors in Japan in May 2026

## Incubate Fund
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 8
- 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.

## East Ventures
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 7
- Stages: Seed, Series A
- Focus: Software, Information Technology, E-Commerce

East Ventures is an early stage venture capital (VC) focused on Southeast Asia, Indonesia & Japan. Success cases include Tokopedia, Traveloka, and Mercari.

## Mitsubishi UFJ Capital
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 6
- Stages: Series B, Series A
- Focus: Software, Health Care, Information Technology

Mitsubishi UFJ Capital is a venture capital firm focusing on life science, ICT, and high technology investments.

## Mizuho Capital
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 6
- 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.

## Kotaro Chiba
- Type: Angel
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 5
- Stages: Seed, Series A
- Focus: Internet, Content, Software

Kotaro Chiba is the founder of ChibaDojo Fund. Kotaro Chiba attended Keio University.

## Kensuke Furukawa
- Type: Angel
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 4
- Stages: Seed, Angel
- Focus: Content, Media and Entertainment, Software

Kensuke Furukawa was born in June 2, 1981. He graduated Waseda University majoring Political Science and Economics, and in 2000, he launched "Milkcafe", a student community, which has grown to a site with 10 million PV per month. In 2004, he became the CEO of Media Clip, which operates a rental bulletin board service "ShitarabaBBS". After that year, he had transfer "Shitaraba BBS" to Livedoor, and took charge of starting up the Consumer Generated Media sector. In 2006, he joined Recruit, and took charge of starting up a new business at Business development sector. In June of 2009, he left Recruit, and became the CEO of nanapi （formerly Rocket Start), which operates the How-to Site "nanapi".

## Masao Ito
- Type: Angel
- Relevant deals: 4
- Stages: Seed, Series A, Angel
- Focus: Content, Social Media, Information Technology

Masao Ito is a Founder & CEO at User Local.

## Daiwa Corporate Investment
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 4
- Stages: Series A, Seed
- Focus: Task Management, Software, Internet

Daiwa Corporate Investment is a private investment firm of Daiwa Securities Group that has been engaged in overseas VC investments by taking advantage of an extensive business network in Japan and foreign countries, long experience and professional knowledge, and by supporting the growth of a number of overseas portfolio companies and their stockexchange listings.

## Genesia Ventures
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 4
- Stages: Seed, Series A
- Focus: Information Technology, Software, Content

Genesia Ventures is a venture capital firm focused on seed/early-stage startups in Japan and Southeast Asia.

## Recruit Strategic Partners
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 3
- Stages: Series A, Seed, Series B
- Focus: E-Commerce, Software, Financial Services

Recruit Strategic Partners is a venture capital firm that invests in innovative startups from all around the world. It is a corporate venture capital arm of Recruit Holdings that seeks to invest in education and financial technology, digital healthcare, and infrastructure sectors.
It was established in 2008 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.

## Ceres
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 3
- Stages: Seed, Corporate Round
- Focus: Cryptocurrency, Content, Internet

Ceres is a company providing internet marketing services and is engaged in the planning, development, and operation of smartphone media.

## TLM
- Type: VC Fund
- Relevant deals: 3
- Stages: Seed, Angel
- Focus: Information Technology, Content, SNS

TLM is a venture capital that invests basically in seed rounds, including some Series A startups.

## 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.

## Colopl Next
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 3
- Stages: Seed, Series A
- Focus: Software, Virtual Reality, E-Commerce

Colopl Next is the corporate venture capital of is Colopl, Inc, which is a leading Japanese gaming company. Colopl, Inc. is founded with the mission of “Entertainment in Real Life”, and constantly put its customer as first priority.Colopl Next is headquartered in Japan, but invests globally in a variety of internet businesses, with the commitmentto support innovative entrepreneurs.

## Sansei Capital Investment
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Koto, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Series A, Series B
- Focus: Content, Software, Medical

Sansei Capital provides portfolio management, corporate management support, and financing services.

## Shunsuke Sasaki
- Type: Angel
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Angel, Pre-Seed
- Focus: Social Media, Content, SNS

Shunsuke Sasaki - Executive officer @ Jiraffe

## Daisuke Kajiwara
- Type: Angel
- Location: Osaka, Osaka, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Series B
- Focus: Social Media, Content, CRM

Daisuke Kajiwara - Director, CTO and Director of CHECK Company @ Every Japan

## aucfan Co.,Ltd.
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Series A, Corporate Round
- Focus: E-Commerce, Marketing, Internet

Aucfan is the only company in Japan that provides all the eCommerce price data across the big three market, America, China and Japan. The data Aucfan aggregates has reached more than 800millions with last 8 years coverage and Aucfan provides these data through its website Aucfan.com. (www.aucfan.com).The data Aucfan provides both to theconsumers and the retailers include the the price across the major global EC and Auction sites such as Rakuten, the No1 shopping site in Japan, Yahoo! Auction, the No1 Auction site in Japan, and Amazon Japan as well as eBay.com, the No1 EC site in US, and Taobao, the No1 Auction site in China.By visiting the Aucfan.com, buyers and sellers can easily find the price and the value of the product globally.Aucfan currently focuses on the consumer buesinss but Aucfan's next strategy is to expand its business to the BtoB by providing the price data to the EC and retail markets and helping them make the critical judgement for the price setting and purchsing just like the Bloomberg providing the financial informationto the financial brokers and helping them make the business judgement.Aucfan's next ambition is to expand its business globally and as the part of that strategy, Aucfan has already launched the Chinese website in JULY/2010 and plans to open the US site in SEP/2010.

## Komura Fujio
- Type: Angel
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Angel
- Focus: Content, Ethereum, Marketing

Komura Fujio

## MTG Ventures
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Nagoya, Aichi, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Series A
- Focus: Marketing, Media and Entertainment, Food and Beverage

MTG Ventures is the corporate venture capital arm of MTG that invests in beauty and wellness tech, food tech, and sports tech sectors.

## STRIVE
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Series A
- Focus: Software, Internet, SaaS

STRIVE focuses on investing in early-stage (Seed to Series A) internet and mobile companies. It seeks out companies in Japan, Southeast Asia, and India with top-notch management teams and strong market potential. It is not tied to strategic investments for GREE Inc. and leverages its pan-Asia expertise for guiding its portfolio in an engaged,hands-on role.

## Jun Nishikawa
- Type: Angel
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Series A, Angel
- Focus: Media and Entertainment, Mobile, Content

Jun Nishikawa - Co-founder, Executive Vice President, COO @ eureka, Inc.

## Suneight Investment
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Toranomon, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Series A, Series B
- Focus: Social Media, Internet, Content

Suneight is a independent Venture Capital firm that invests and supports business development of all the stages of the venture companies.

## Yu Akasaka
- Type: Angel
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Angel
- Focus: Food and Beverage, Content, Internet

During Hosei University student, and intern at Hakuhodo C & D. After joining the Image-net, I do media monetization of EC site as a media planner. Then, new business, engaged in Alliance. Launched a crowdsourcing site "MILLION DESIGNS" of design in the individual, sold to Ransazu Corporation. Established the Eureka Co., Ltd., wasappointed Representative Director CEO.

## ITOCHU Technology Ventures
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Series B, Series A
- Focus: E-Commerce, Software, Information Technology

ITOCHU Technology Ventures (ITV), based in Tokyo, is the venture capital arm of ITOCHU Corporation. ITOCHU is one of the world's largest corporations with offices in over 80 countries and operations that cover a broad spectrum of industries. ITV's mission is to invest and help build leading information technology companies by leveraging avast array of resources both domestically and internationally throughout ITOCHU and its group companies. The ITOCHU group has a long history of funding information technology companies with successes including Siebel Systems, NVIDIA, Openwave and Aruba Networks. Current portfolio includes, Box, Fab, Ooyala, WHILL, Tokyo Otaku Mode, etc.

## Shogo Kawada
- Type: Angel
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Angel
- Focus: Software, SaaS, Media and Entertainment

Shogo Kawada is Co-founder and Adviser of DeNA, a global Internet company focused on a social games platform, social games, e-commerce and other Web services for mobile devices and PCs.

## Venture Labo Investment
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Series B, Seed
- Focus: Internet, Software, Media and Entertainment

Venture Labo Investment is venture capital firm that provides financial supports to invested companies at each growth stage.

## Koki Yabu
- Type: Angel
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Angel, Pre-Seed
- Focus: Content, Finance, Data Mining

Koki Yabu is Founder, President & CEO at Mobcast inc.

## Kiyoshi Nishikawa
- Type: Angel
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Pre-Seed
- Focus: News, Social Media, Big Data

After working at KDD Corporation （Currently known as KDDI Corporation）, Kiyoshi Nishikawa next went to work at Arthur D. Little Inc. in the United States, where he became inspired to start his own company. After returning to Japan, he established a Japanese corporation of the world’s largest Internet company, America On Line, LLC. Later andbased on this experience and the relationships he developed, he founded the first Internet business incubator, NETAGE, Inc. After serving as the President and CEO of NETAGE Group, he later became and still serves as the Chairman of ngi group, inc. Kiyoshi was one of the main entrepreneurs responsible for proposing and realization of “Shibuya Bit Valley Concept” and is well known for his various speeches and writings. He is a graduate of the Department of Education at Tokyo University.

## Mistletoe
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Series A
- Focus: Information Technology, Software, Education

Mistletoe is a hub for startups and the overall entrepreneurial ecosystem. It specifically provides learning opportunities for entrepreneurs, facilitates startup communities, invests in and supports startup companies and venture capitals.

## Hidetoshi Takano
- Type: Angel
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Angel
- Focus: Internet, Information Technology, Media and Entertainment

Joined Intelligence in 1999. Established Key Players Inc. in 2005. Consultation with more than 3,000 managers and career counseling for more than 10,000 individuals. In addition, we have invested in more than 55 outside directors, advisors and angels in Silicon Valley and Bangladesh in Japan. Over 100 lectures on careers, entrepreneurship andstartups.

## PE&HR
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Series A
- Focus: Software, Education, E-Learning

PE&HR is a private equity and venture capital firm that seeks to invest in incubation, start-up, and early-stage companies. PE&HR primarily invests in the human resources, internet, healthcare, IT, mobile, and social commerce-related industries.

## Freebank
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Muromachi, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Series A
- Focus: CRM, IT Management, Video Conferencing

Freebank provides funds, supports, and develops venture business managers with the aim of moving forward with the next decade.
The company was founded in 2013 and is headquartered in Japan.

## GMO VenturePartners
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Series A
- Focus: Financial Services, FinTech, Finance

An investment that restructures the  value  and  quality.Supplying big capital is not an essential value of our firm.We have a strong attitude to input and drive critical thinking behind a new startup.After the problem is clarified and solution become established in the world,people could not imagine the society without that solution.An investment that innovates this world.We will become a real partner to execute the strategy together.INVENTION OF THE ESSENCE ----we will keep on doing it.

## Christine Herron
- Type: Angel
- Location: San Francisco, California, United States
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Series A, Series B
- Focus: E-Commerce, Personalization, Social Media

Christine Herron is an early-stage investor and diversity advocate, and co-leads the Intel Capital Diversity Fund while leading investments in early-stage companies. She is responsible for diversity investing across Intel Capital sectors, to support technology companies founded or run by women, underrepresented minorities, LGBTQ, or veterans. AtIntel, Christine's direct portfolio includes 500 Friends (ACQ: Merkle), betaworks, Brit Media, E la Carte, Funders Club, Goldbely, Jelli, Movable Ink, SmartZip, Storenvy (ACQ: OpenSky), Two Bit Circus, and Yummly (ACQ: WHR), and Intel Education Accelerator companies Comprendio, Immersed Games, Sutori, and Vidcode.Previously, Christine was an investor with seed stage venture fund First Round Capital, working with Better Finance, Double Verify, Get Satisfaction (ACQ: Sprinklr), Mint (ACQ: INTU), and Xobni (ACQ: YHOO). At Omidyar Network, she developed the Media and Web 2.0 practice strategy and led deals such as Common Sense Media and Socialtext.At Geocapital Partners, Christine focused on early Internet and network technology, leading Series A funding for AXON Networks (ACQ: 3COM), D-Vision (ACQ: ADSK), FocusVision (MBO), Netcom (IPO: NETC), and ViaGrafix (IPO: VIAX). Christine was also a founder or early employee at GiftWorks (ACQ: FrontStream), Mercury2, and NetObjects (IPO: NETC).Christine earned an MBA from Stanford University and a BA from Columbia University. She is a founding advisor or mentor to 500 Startups, Bullpen Capital, and StartX, and serves on Alonzo King's LINES Ballet Board of Directors. She is active on @christine and a frequent speaker.

## 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.

## Akatsuki
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Corporate Round
- Focus: Content, Media and Entertainment, Gaming

Akatsuki offers MobileSocialGame services. They utilize cutting edge technology and ideas to realize and deliver their ambitions to their users. They provide new value to society through the services we manage daily. Providing services throughout the world that brighten up everyone's daily lives.

## Venture United
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Series A
- Focus: Internet, Software, Information Technology

Venture United is a provider of venture capital for entrepreneurs, especially for internet-related businesses.

## Future Venture Capital
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Kyoto, Kyoto, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- 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.

## Shuuichi Wada
- Type: Angel
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 2
- Stages: Seed, Angel, Series A
- Focus: Reservations, Content, Social Media

Shuuichi Wada - CTO @ alu Japan

## Otani Hiroshi
- Type: Angel
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 1
- Stages: Series A
- Focus: Content, Outsourcing, Social Media

Otani Hiroshi is the Outside Director at aucfan Co.,Ltd.

## Recruit Holdings
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 1
- Stages: Series A, Series B
- Focus: SaaS, Software, Internet

Recruit Holdings is a Tokyo-based company that specializes in HR and recruitment services. Also, the company provides information services to help people discover opportunities for life. Their global network spans worldwide, including Asia, the U.S. and Europe.

## Orient Corporation
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 1
- Stages: Series A, Series D
- Focus: Apps, Logistics, Information Services

Orient Corporation is a consumer credit company that provides auto loans, credit cards, and direct cash loan services.

The company was founded in 1954 and based in Tokyo, Japan.

## Toshiro Wakimaru
- Type: Angel
- Relevant deals: 1
- Stages: Seed
- Focus: Task Management, Food and Beverage, SNS

Toshiro “Tosh” Wakimaru is the Chief Operating Officer of MedPeer, Inc. , Tokyo, Japan since May 2010. Medpeer is the “Medical Doctor Exclusive” SNS in Japan that has just successfully gone to the market in 2014.Prior to the current job, Tosh had been actively working for Price Waterhouse Consulting, Japan LLP (now IBM Japan, Ltd.) aftergraduating from the Boston University School of Management in 1996. While there he completed numerous projects in corporate strategy, operation improvement, and new business development focusing on the retail, service, and healthcare industries with a secondment to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.

## Adways
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 1
- Stages: Seed, Series A
- Focus: Internet, Media and Entertainment, Software

Based in Tokyo, Adways is a mobile marketing solution provider mostly known for its Asia’s largest mobile CPI adnetwork “AppDriver” and mobile app measurement & tracking tool “PartyTrack” used by great number of major app developers around the world. Since 2004 when it opened the first overseas office in China, Adways has been aggressivelyexpanding its mobile app distribution network in Asian markets. Now with 1,000 employees in 11 countries (Japan, China, Korea, Taiwan, India, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore and the USA), Adways supports app developers worldwide to maximize their user acquisition and monetization and furthermore thrives to provide new value to the market. Haruhisa Okamura is Founder and CEO of Adways who has grown Adways from a small startup to an international corporation with over a thousand employees around the world. In 2006, Adways went public and Okamura was one of the youngest entrepreneurs to list a company in Japan at that time.You can read his story here:  "How a high school dropout became a multi-millionaire entrepreneur" http://www.techinasia.com/high-school-dropout-multimillionaire-entrepreneur/

## Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 1
- Stages: Debt Financing, Series A, Series B
- Focus: Financial Services, FinTech, Software

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, is a Japanese bank holding / financial services company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. MUFG manages the affairs of its subsidiaries within the group and the business of the group as a whole along with all relevant ancillary business.The MUFG Group turned its eye toward the expected operatingenvironment changes over the next decade, and launched the new medium-term business plan, which outlines the strategies that will be implemented over the first three years of this period. The new plan is designed to guide us as they strive to realize their corporate vision—“Be the world's most trusted financial group.” By accelerating initiatives that span across business entities, regions, and business groups, they will work to live up to the expectations of their customers, shareholders, employees, and other stakeholders.The MUFG Group aims to achieve stable and sustainable income growth through seeking diversified revenue bases especially in customer segment both domestically and abroad, and capital efficiency by improving productivity. In addition, they will enhance shareholder value by conducting capital management flexibly taking the balance of (1) enhancement of further shareholder returns, (2) maintenance of a solid capital base and (3) strategic investments for sustainable growth, into consideration.

## Mynavi
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 1
- Stages: Corporate Round, Seed
- Focus: Software, Marketing, Internet

Mynavi Corporation provides information services.

## Nishiki Takashi
- Type: Angel
- Relevant deals: 1
- Stages: Angel
- Focus: Content, Education, Social Media

Nishiki Takashi - Outside Director @ aucfan Co.,Ltd.

## Nobuhiro Ariyasu
- Type: Angel
- Location: Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Relevant deals: 1
- Stages: Seed, Angel
- Focus: Content, Internet, Finance

Nobuhiro Ariyasu is the CEO at Coach United.

## Nagoya TV Ventures
- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Nagoya, Aichi, Japan
- Relevant deals: 1
- Stages: Seed, Series A
- Focus: Media and Entertainment, Content, Internet

Nagoya TV Ventures is wholly owned by Nagoya Broadcasting Network, invests in everything from seed to later stage in companies focused on media, entertainment, video, and internet.

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