Gobi Partners, one of Asia’s most active venture capital firms, has entered Japan through JR East’s TAKANAWA GATEWAY Link Scholars’ Hub (LiSH) as a Global Network Partner, marking a decisive step in connecting Japan’s innovation frontier with Southeast Asia’s growth markets.

Gobi Partners said in a statement on Thursday that the expansion signals the firm’s intent to bridge Japan’s world-class industrial and technological capabilities with Southeast Asia’s fast-rising entrepreneurial energy.

Located in TAKANAWA GATEWAY CITY, LiSH is part of East Japan Railway Company’s (JR East) next-generation smart-city development directly linked to Tokyo International Airport.

Opened in May 2025, the hub serves as a “global gateway” for startups, corporates, and researchers to collaborate on technologies and business models shaping the future of urban life.

“Japan’s innovation ecosystem is hungry for new growth models, while Southeast Asia’s startups are now proving their scalability beyond home markets,

“That convergence is where the next wave of cross-border venture activity will come from — and we want to be right in the middle of it,” said Thomas G. Tsao, Co-Founder and Chair of Gobi Partners.

Gobi’s entry into Japan builds on years of collaboration with its venture ecosystem.

The firm previously co-hosted the Malaysia–Japan Innovation & Capital Forum with the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) and JETRO, convening policymakers, investors, and founders to explore initial public offering (IPO) and merger and acquisition (M&A) pathways, sovereign-grade data, and co-creation opportunities.

Gobi also partnered with Cross Capital to channel Japanese investment into Southeast Asia’s fast-growing digital economy.

Its portfolio already reflects deep connections with Japan. Several Southeast Asian companies under Gobi have received strategic backing from leading Japanese corporations, including JULO (Saison Group), CompAsia (OSK SBI), iStore iSend (Yamato Transport Co., Ltd.), Glints (Persol Group), Funding Societies (Cool Japan Fund), Animoca Brands (Sumitomo Corp, Kodansha), and Carsome (MUFG, Daiwa).

“Japan’s ecosystem is opening further. Corporates and investors are actively looking overseas for agility and fresh thinking,

“Southeast Asia offers that dynamism, and through Gobi’s network, we’re helping both sides find common ground,” said Kengo Suzuki, Venture Partner at Gobi Partners.

The move aligns with Japan’s Startup Development Five-Year Plan (2022–2027), which targets the creation of 100,000 startups and 100 unicorns through greater cross-border collaboration.

In 2024, Japan’s venture funding climbed 35 percent, while Southeast Asia drew more than $5 billion in early-stage capital — evidence that innovation and capital flows across Asia are converging faster than ever.

As Japan deepens its global outreach and Southeast Asia cements its role as the region’s growth engine, Gobi stands at the intersection of both movements — translating industrial depth into entrepreneurial scale.

“Gobi has always moved early into markets others overlook,

“Where others see risk, we see inevitability. Japan is the next step in that journey,” Tsao added.

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