What Spiral Capital does

Spiral Capital is an independent venture capital firm headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, founded in 2016 (as IMJ Investment Partners Japan) and rebranded to its current form in 2019 following a 2017 management buyout from CCC Group/Accenture. The firm operates two parallel businesses: (1) General Funds — managed by Spiral Capital — which deploy seed to later-stage capital into Japanese startups across a "BIG4" thesis of AI, Smart Infrastructure (including Climate Tech), FinTech, and Healthcare, and (2) CVC Funds — managed by subsidiary Spiral Innovation Partners — which deploy dedicated corporate venture capital on behalf of anchor LPs including Seino Holdings, T&D Holdings, Zenkoku Hosho, Japan Post Bank, Mori Building, Keio, and Kraftia.

The firm's core platform combines direct investment (initial checks of 50M-500M yen, with follow-on capacity up to 2 billion yen per portfolio company) with value-added portfolio support (management advisory, HR/PR services) and an open innovation platform (operated through the XSprout JV with eiicon, established January 2024) that connects portfolio startups with corporate LP resources. The group manages approximately 750 billion JPY (~$5B) in total AUM across its General Funds (Spiral Capital Japan Fund 1 at 70B JPY, Fund 2 at 120B JPY, Fund 3 at 150B JPY) and multiple CVC funds, supported by LP base of over 80% financial institutions and institutional investors in Fund 3.

Revenue is generated through standard VC economics: annual management fees (typically ~2% of committed capital) on AUM plus performance-based carried interest (typically ~20%) on exits. The firm holds 156+ portfolio companies (87 under General Fund, 69+ under CVC Funds) and has executed 17+ exits including three notable IPOs (Visional, Rakumo, ENECHANGE) and additional recent listings (PowerX in December 2025, PRONI in December 2024). The team of 25+ named professionals draws primarily from investment banking (Goldman Sachs, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank), private equity (Carlyle), and management consulting (McKinsey, BCG, Deloitte), with several Wharton MBAs among the partners.

Name

Spiral Capital

Legal name

Spiral Capital株式会社 (Spiral Capital, Inc.)

Website

https://spiral-cap.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Spiral Capital is an independent Tokyo-based venture capital firm managing approximately 750 billion JPY in general and CVC funds, investing in Japanese AI, climate tech, fintech, and healthcare startups on behalf of institutional and corporate limited partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital Fund Management

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394), Other Investment Pools and Funds (5259)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Early-Stage Venture Capital (Series A/B) (FSANAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Sector-Focused Venture Capital (Vertical Specialists) (FSANAAAD)

Keywords

• Venture capital funds
• Private equity investing
• Corporate venture capital
• Fund management services
• Startup growth capital

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Management Fees: Annual management fees charged on assets under management across General Fund and CVC Fund operations
2. Carried Interest: Performance-based carried interest from successful portfolio company exits, typically 20% of profits above hurdle rate

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Spiral Capital is an independent venture capital firm that manages General Funds (Spiral Capital Japan Fund 1, 2, and 3) and CVC Funds through its subsidiary Spiral Innovation Partners. The firm invests seed to later-stage capital in Japanese startups across AI, Smart Infrastructure (including Climate Tech), FinTech, and Healthcare (BIG4 sectors), with check sizes of 50M-500M yen and up to 2B yen in total exposure per company. It also provides portfolio companies with management advisory, HR/PR support, and facilitates open innovation between startups and corporate limited partners.

Product overview

Spiral Capital is an independent venture capital firm that manages General Funds (Spiral Capital Japan Fund 1号, 2号, and 3号) and CVC Funds through Spiral Innovation Partners. The firm provides investment services to limited partners and supports portfolio companies through management advisory, HR/PR support, and open innovation facilitation. The General Funds focus on seed to later-stage investments in AI, Smart Infrastructure, FinTech, and Healthcare sectors, while CVC Funds enable corporate partners to invest strategically alongside the firm. The group's AUM reached approximately 750 billion JPY as of late 2025.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Spiral Capital Japan Fund 1
• Spiral Capital Japan Fund 2
• Spiral Capital Japan Fund 3
• Value Chain Innovation Fund
• T&D Innovation Fund
• Zenkoku Innovation Fund (Nationwide Guarantee Innovation Fund)
• Yuucho Spiral Regional Innovation Fund
• KRAFTIA Innovation Fund
• Mori Building Innovation Fund
• Keio Rail Fund
• Portfolio Support Services
• Open Innovation Support Services

Quantifiable outcome

• Multiple unicorn potential exits through 2 billion yen total investment capacity per company
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• XSprout (Joint Venture)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 January 2024Joint venture between Spiral Innovation Partners (51%) and eiicon (49%) to operate Japan's largest open innovation platform AUBA. Located at Azabudai Hills with 34 employees. Provides CVC consulting and open innovation advisory services to corporate LPs.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves17 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Global Brain: Independent Japanese VC managing multi-billion-yen funds with sector-focused investments in AI, deep tech, and digital health. Closely comparable: similar independent VC structure, similar stage focus (seed to growth), and similar corporate LP relationships across Japanese corporates.
• DG Incubation: VC arm of Digital Garage (TYO:4819), operating multiple funds including CVC structures with corporate partners. Comparable: similar dual general fund + CVC fund model, similar Japan focus, and similar AI/fintech sector specialization.
• ANRI: Japan-focused early-stage VC with multiple fund vintages. Comparable: similar independent VC structure, similar early-stage focus on Japanese tech startups, and similar generational fund management approach.
• JIC Venture Growth Investments: Government-affiliated Japanese VC (formerly INCJ-related) investing in growth-stage startups. Comparable as a large-scale Japan-focused VC with institutional LP backing, overlapping in growth-stage investments and TSE Growth listings.
• JAFCO Group: Japan's largest publicly listed venture capital firm (TYO:8595), investing across seed to growth stages with similar AUM scale and broad sector exposure. Most direct comparability: both operate general funds and CVC structures, similar Japan-only geographic focus, and overlapping exit channels (TSE Growth listings).
• B Dash Ventures: Independent Japanese VC operating early-to-growth stage funds. Comparable: similar Japan-only focus, similar stage focus on internet/software startups, and similar LP base from Japanese corporates and financial institutions.
• Coral Capital: Independent Japan-focused early-stage VC managing multiple funds. Comparable: similar independent VC positioning, similar early-stage focus in Japanese tech startups, and similar entrepreneurial operator-investor model.
• World Innovation Lab (WiL): Japan-headquartered VC with US presence investing in enterprise SaaS, fintech, and digital health. Comparable as an independent VC of similar scale with cross-border investment capabilities and corporate LP backing (Sony, Dai-ichi Life, etc.).

Broad incumbents

• MUFG Capital: Bank-affiliated VC arm of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (one of Spiral's Fund 3 LPs). Comparable as a major Japanese institutional VC with broad sector exposure but differentiated by bank-affiliation vs. Spiral's independent positioning.
• SMBC Venture Capital: Bank-affiliated VC arm of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (also a Spiral Fund 3 LP via SMBC Nikko Securities). Comparable as a major Japanese VC with broad sector coverage, differentiated by scale and corporate parentage versus Spiral's independent model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Spiral_Capital
• Facebookfacebook.com/p/Spiral-Capital-100057516096408

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments100 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Spiral Capital