Sakana AI: Series A Fundraising from Leading Japanese Companies
Nishimura & Asahi advised Sakana AI on its Series A fundraising, which raised a total of approx. JPY 300 million. Funding came from several leading Japanese banking institutions including Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and Mizuho Financial Group, as well as major companies including NEC, SBI Group, Dai-ichi Life Insurance, ITOCHU Group, KDDI, Fujitsu and Nomura Holdings.
The Nishimura & Asahi team advising Sakana AI was led by partner Akihisa Yamamoto, supported by Tetsu Miyazawa, Yuki Terao and Rutsu Matsunaga.
Akihisa is a partner in our M&A team. He handles many domestic and international M&As, business alliances including JVs, business succession, equity finance, and hostile takeovers. He has abundant practical experience for both listed and unlisted companies and wide range of company sizes and transaction types, knowledge of cutting-edge practical trends and laws and regulations, and the ability to respond flexibly and hands-on.
In addition, he active in start-up finance support, IPO support, and daily legal support.
Recently, using the network and knowledge cultivated through studying abroad in Europe and the United States, he also deals with sustainability-related topics such as sustainable finance, including ESG investment and impact investment, social enterprise, B Corp certification, and social IPO.