Saudi Arabian state fund invests heavily in Animoca Brands to develop Web3 in the region

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The $50 million partnership between Animoca Brands and Saudi Arabia’s national fund NEOM aims to promote the development of Web3 infrastructure in the region, in line with the Saudi Vision 2030 strategy.

On October 30, Animoca Brands, a Hong Kong company that specializes in incubating Web3 and NFT game projects, officially established a strategic partnership with NEOM, the Saudi Arabian government’s $500 billion investment fund.

This handshake aims to promote the development of Web3 infrastructure in the region, in line with the Saudi Vision 2030 strategy to enhance economic, social and cultural diversity.

“Web3 technology and infrastructure development will not only become a critical foundation for NEOM’s technology architecture, but also have the potential to revolutionize the global industry. By partnering with a Web3 market leader like Animoca Brands, we hope to accelerate the development and adoption of this technology.”

Majid Mufti, CEO, NEOM Investment Fund

According to the agreement, NEOM Investment Fund, a strategic investment fund of NEOM, will invest US$50 million in Animoca Brands. In particular, Animoca Brands will receive:

Raised US$25 million through the issuance of convertible bonds, with a conversion cap of A$4.50 (Australian dollars) per share.
The remaining $25 million will be used by NEOM to purchase shares in the Web3 game development unit on the secondary market.

As we all know, Neom It is a US$500 billion future smart city located on the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia and is part of the “Saudi Vision 2030” plan. NEOM will be made up of multiple hyperconnected cities that serve as floating industrial complexes, enterprise zones, research centres, sports and entertainment venues, and tourist destinations.

This is becoming an innovation hub. Entrepreneurs and business leaders will come here to research, incubate and commercialize their technologies and companies in groundbreaking new ways. The plan is part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s efforts to diversify Saudi Arabia’s economy and reduce the country’s reliance on oil.

It can be seen that in recent years, the Greater Middle East has rapidly accelerated the adoption of emerging technologies. In addition to the NEOM project, Saudi Arabia has recently partnered with universities in China to develop Arabic-based artificial intelligence (AI) systems to handle queries in the local language.

On October 18, OpenAI, the developer of the popular artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT, announced a partnership with Dubai technology group G42, focusing on expansion in the Middle East.

In early October 2023, Adaverse, the leading investment fund on Cardano, also decided to choose Saudi Arabia as a location to expand its Web3 portfolio.

As for Saudi Arabia, it is the largest country in West Asia and accounts for 45% of the US$1.8 billion gaming market in the MENA region. The people in this country are also very interested in technology, which brings together all the factors for Web3 to flourish.

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