Microsoft backs Wemade, a popular video game developer that has been making aggressive bets on blockchain in recent years, the latest sign that tech giants are showing a growing interest in web3.
South Korea’s Wemade said in a press release that it has raised $46 million from Microsoft, Shinhan Asset Management and Kiwoom Securities. In a regulatory submissionWemade announced that it is raising capital through the sale of convertible bonds.
“This is a meaningful investment by reputable financial and strategic investors with a proven track record,” Wemade CEO Henry Chang said in a statement. “Wemade and Wemix will continue their efforts to raise more capital and invest actively to build the global platform for the digital economy.”
Founded over two decades ago, Wemade is best known for its title, “The Legend of Mir,” which at one point had over 200 million signups.
In recent years, Wemade has been exploring ways to incorporate blockchain technology into its new titles and offerings. It recently launched its blockchain Wemix3.0 to mainnet and launched a stablecoin and a DeFi platform. The company says it aims to “transform everyday games with blockchain technology and establish its Wemix coin as a major currency in the blockchain gaming space.”
“A new economy platform NILE that supports NFT and DAO will also be introduced shortly. (EOD),” Wemade said in the press release.
Numerous tech giants, including Microsoft and Google, and legendary banks have made a series of investments in the web3 space in recent years. Microsoft is also an investor in ConsenSys, the company behind MetaMask wallet and business solutions such as Infura, as well as decentralized data warehouse Space and Time and NFT studio Palm, according to Web3 signals. Google Ventures supports fraud detection service Sardine, trading app Blockchain.com and NFT startup YugaLabs, the tracker said.
Microsoft, which operates the Xbox gaming ecosystem, has invested $14.8 million in Wemade through the purchase of convertible bonds, Shinhan $21.2 million and Kiwoom $10.5 million, official filings show.
Kate Park contributed to this report.