Salesforce Ventures is launching a $100 million fund to invest in Japanese startups, the company announced late Tuesday afternoon. The Japan Trailblazer Fund will help empower Japanese startups, fuel cloud innovation, and continue to drive customer success. The investment helps strengthen Salesforce’s position as one of the leading foreign corporate venture capital investors in Japan.
John Somorjai, the executive vice president of corporate development at Salesforce Venture said, “The fund will specifically empower Japanese startups in the Salesforce ecosystem — those that integrate or are built on the Salesforce Platform, or those that implement Salesforce technology (System Integrators). To determine any investment, we listen to our customers, align with our product strategy and ensure the company and founders align with Salesforce’s values.”
According to IDC, Japan’s public cloud services market is predicted to double to $13 billion by 2022. This fund will prove to be a massive boost for Japan, which has struggled to entice overseas investors. Salesforce Ventures has invested in Japanese startups since 2011 and has funded 40 in the country. The $100 million fund is a small portion of Salesforce’s investment plan, which has invested more than $1 billion into companies worldwide.
“Salesforce Ventures is an incredibly strong partner to Japanese startups,” Koji Ogishima, TeamSpirit CEO, said in a statement. “The investment and the unique access we get to the Salesforce ecosystem has enabled us to expand our business faster and maintain that rapid pace of growth.”
The fund will help provide financial support to entrepreneurs in various stages of their growth.
“We are always looking at new opportunities, customer demand and innovative technology. Salesforce Ventures invests in companies in different countries as the opportunity arises. We invest in innovative technologies that help make our customers smarter about their customers,” Somorjai said.
