New Japan-US VC firm IMJ Fenox plans to invest in Southeast Asia, Japan, US

IMJ Fenox, a new venture capital firm focusing on Southeast Asia, Japan, and the United States, has been jointly set up by IMJ Corporation, a web and mobile company in Japan, and Fenox VC, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm.

The new fund will invest in mobile, internet, and software companies in Southeast Asia, Japan, and the United States. It is headquartered in Singapore, and has branch offices in Jakarta and Tokyo.

With links in Japan and the United States, IMJ Fenox is well-placed to bring companies from Southeast Asia to the global stage. Similarly, it can also assist companies that want to expand into the region.

The firm will invest in companies that are in the seed, early, as well as growth stages (Series A and above).

Yuji Horiguchi serves as the president of IMJ Fenox. He is also currently the President and CEO of startup accelerator IMJ Investment Partners, and the CFO of IMJ Corporation.

Koichi Saito, formerly an associate with Fenox VC, is representing the firm in Southeast Asia.

Many of Fenox’s recent investments are US companies like Socialize, Bottlenose, and lark. Exceptions would include Sydney-based YCom alumnus 99dresses and most recently Japan’s IACC, which runs a consumer solar energy marketplace.

IMJ Fenox adds to the recent spate of expansions by Japanese investment firms into Southeast Asia. What makes it unique though is that it is a joint-venture with a US company — other endeavors into the region are usually run exclusively by the parent company.

Japanese firms that are investing in Southeast Asia:

JAFCO Asia: Invested in BubbleMotion, DS3

CyberAgent Ventures: Invested in Bilna, Foody, NhacCuaTui

GREE Ventures: Invested in Berrybenka, PriceArea, Luxola

B Dash Ventures: Invested in e27

GMO Venture Partners: Invested in Coda Payments