Saudi Arabia’s vision for NEOM, the future urban city project to be located between the Red Sea, Egypt and Jordan, continues to diversify its economy with goals of developing new infrastructure and connections.
That latest diversification comes in the form of an investment, with the NEOM Investment Fund pledging $50 million towards building a Web3 enterprise service with Animoca Brands.
Web3 expansion
Animoca Brands is a games publisher with plenty of acquisitions under its belt. The company has just recently raised $20 million towards its flagship metaverse project, and now, the NEOM fund is investing an initial $25 million into Animoca for a new project.
The investment will be made through the acquisition of convertible notes to foster technological advancement, reported GamesBeat. Then, the other $25 million half of the investment be spent purchasing Animoca Brands’ secondary market shares, forging a strategic partnership between the two that will enable new collaboration.
A key part of their vision is to create a Web3 hub in NEOM with global application, leveraging Animoca’s partners, subsidiaries and portfolio.
"We are honoured and excited to partner with and receive investment from NEOM, one of the world’s most ambitious projects seeking to use innovation and technology to redefine how we live, work, and play," said Animoca Brands co-founder Yat Siu.
"We have always referred to the growth of the Web3 ecosystem as the emergence of a new meta-nation, and now NEOM could well become the first region to fully harness the power of blockchain."
"We are excited to partner with Animoca Brands to support the development of NEOM’s digital infrastructure," said NEOM Investment Fund CEO Majid Mufti, CEO of NEOM Investment Fund.
"Web3 technology and infrastructure development will not only be an important foundation of NEOM’s tech stack and architecture, but also has potential to revolutionise global industries. By partnering with a market-leading company like Animoca Brands, we hope to accelerate Web3 technology development and adoption."
This summer, Siu joined a Hong Kong government initiative to make recommendations on the sustainable and responsible development of Web3 in the region.
In NEOM, meanwhile, game developers as young as 15 are being supported through Maysalward's new programme.
