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Animoca Brands has refuted claims that it reduced its target for the metaverse fund by $200 million. Despite volatility in the crypto market and instability in the banking sector, the fund remains committed.

The firm has also downplayed allegations that its valuation plummeted from $6 billion in July 2022 to approximately $2 billion in March 2023.

These assertions emerged following a report from Reuters on March 24 that cited anonymous individuals familiar with the matter. The sources claimed that Animoca had initially halved its $2 billion metaverse fund target in January and further reduced it by 20% to $800 million recently.

The fund was declared in November 2022 to provide capital to mid-to-late-stage start-ups with a metaverse focus. During that time, Animoca co-founder and chairman Yat Siu stated that the fund’s target was between $1 billion and $2 billion, depending on the amount of capital raised.

Animoca has stated that the assertion that the Animoca Capital fund target was reduced from $2 billion to $1 billion is not factual, as $1 billion has always been within the declared range. The company acknowledged that the banking sector‘s collapses in the United States had an impact, but emphasized that the final amount raised for the fund has not yet been determined.

The firm stated that, “there’s no doubt that the FTX and banking crises have had a serious impact on available venture capital, but fundraising for the Animoca Capital fund is in progress. When the fundraising concludes, we will provide the market with the appropriate details, including the final size of this fund.”

Regarding the company’s valuation, Animoca asserted that the figures reported by Reuters and “two other” unnamed individuals cited were inaccurate. Animoca, which trades as AB1, was initially listed on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) in the firm’s early days. 

However, AB1 was delisted in March 2020 due to the ASX’s allegations that Animoca violated its listing rules by engaging in crypto-related activities and other matters.

Since then, its shares have traded on unlisted stock-focused exchanges like the Sydney-based PrimaryMarkets. 

The data from this platform was used to estimate AB1’s total market capitalization at approximately $2 billion. However, Animoca disputes that these figures fully represent the company’s total valuation.

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