Whole Earth Foundation raises 298 M JPY (approx 2.7 M USD) from Nippon Chutetsukan, the world’s first fundraising by token convertible bonds
Whole Earth Foundation (CEO: Daiki Moriyama), a startup that builds, provides, and operates an infrastructure information platform for citizen participation, announces that it has raised 298 M JPY (approx 2.7 M USD) through token convertible bonds from Nippon Chutetsukan.
Background of the fundraising
WEF is a startup that builds, provides, and operates a citizen-participatory infrastructure information platform based on the vision of “We Democratize Infrastructure Management”.
In Japan, where the population is declining, it is structurally inevitable that the burden of maintenance costs for aging infrastructure will be passed on to future generations. In order to overcome this situation, the WEF is taking on the challenge of using gamification and data science technology to promote innovation in the infrastructure industry in a way that allows each citizen who uses the infrastructure to proactively participate.
The WEF contributes to the elimination of information asymmetry by visualizing the actual state of infrastructure. In addition, the WEF will provide incentives to citizen users who provide information that contributes to the public good, and will work to build and promote a highly efficient and low-cost infrastructure maintenance and management platform.
Comments from the investor
“How can we efficiently protect the infrastructure that is indispensable to our lives? This is the most pressing issue for those of us involved in this industry. WEF can provide a solution to this problem with its cutting-edge technology that incorporates DX, AI, and a UI for citizen participation.
The investment in WEF is expected to accelerate the construction of an information platform that utilizes the technology platform obtained through the PoC that both companies have been working on. In addition, we are confident that we will be able to pave the way for new efficiencies as the sophistication of information collection and use is implemented in society.”
- Shuichi Kusaka, President of Nippon Chutetsukan
About Token Convertible Bonds
WEF is a Singapore corporation in the form of Public Company Limited by Guarantee. Since WEF is not a stock company, it raises funds through the sale of tokens (Whole Eath Coin, WEC) issued by WEF rather than equity. However, since the WEC issued by WEF is not listed on the Japanese market at this time, we have decided to issue bonds that can be converted into WEC after the WEC is listed on the Japanese market.
The use of equity convertible bonds is becoming increasingly popular in Japan, but this is the first time in the world that a token convertible bond has been used to raise funds (*according to WEF research).
The WEF will continue its dialogue with crypto asset exchanges registered with the Financial Services Agency (FSA) and the Ministry of Finance (MOF) for the listing of WEC in Japan.
Whole Earth Foundation Overview
Company name: Whole Earth Foundation
Representative: Daiki Moriyama, Co-founder & CEO
Establishment: December 2020
URL: https://wholeearthfoundation.org/
For more information, please contact
Whole Earth Foundation
info@wholeearthfoundation.org
