What BASE Partners does

BASE Partners is an independent venture capital firm headquartered in Roppongi, Tokyo, founded in July 2017 by Yuzuru Sotokawa and Takehiro Yamaguchi. The firm manages two funds — BASE Partners Fund1号投資事業有限責任組合 and basepartners2号投資事業有限責任組合 (formed June 2023) — and invests primarily at the seed stage while extending into early and mid-stage rounds. Its stated proposition is hands-on support rather than pure capital: founders are professional operators (executives, engineers, designers, accountants) who themselves have built and exited companies, and the firm pairs funding with operational mentoring, network access, and recruiting assistance for resource-constrained startups. The portfolio spans 30+ companies across consumer internet, fintech, metaverse/VTuber, deep-tech, life sciences, and applied AI, including notable names such as Brave group (VTuber/IP), UPSIDER (corporate cards), Snkrdunk/SODA (sneaker resale), coco (AI customer engagement), and ハインツテック (nanotech cell processing).

The business model follows the standard VC construct: management fees on committed capital plus carried interest on exits. Distribution is direct deal flow sourced from partner networks, startup events, and inbound referrals, supported by an official website and PR/news syndications; the firm lists operational partners Rooters and Univis Group, plus the VC Startup Health Insurance Association, and has executed co-investments with Coral Capital. Revenue and AUM are not publicly disclosed; cumulative disclosed deal participation runs into the low tens of billions of yen, anchored by repeated follow-ons in Brave group. The team comprises five core professionals — two Managing Partners, one Partner, one Principal, and two Advisors with backgrounds spanning IPO advisory, AI startups, and corporate FP&A — operating from a single Tokyo office.

Name

BASE Partners

Legal name

株式会社basepartners

Website

https://base.partners

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

BASE Partners is an independent, Tokyo-based seed-stage venture capital firm founded in 2017, operating two funds and investing in Japanese startups across consumer internet, fintech, AI, and deep-tech with hands-on operational support.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital / Private Equity

NAICS

Other Financial Investment Activities (5239)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Emerging Manager / Seeding Platforms (Multi-Manager) (FSANAGAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Emerging Managers / Seeding Platforms (FSAHAKAI)

Keywords

• Seed-stage venture capital
• Early-stage startup investing
• Independent VC funds
• Hands-on management support
• Entrepreneur-led investment

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations

Revenue model

1. Venture Capital Fund Management: BASE Partners generates returns through managing venture capital funds, investing in seed-stage and early-stage startups. The firm operates two funds: BASE Partners Fund1号投資事業有限責任組合 and basepartners2号投資事業有限責任組合.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

BASE Partners is an independent venture capital firm that invests primarily in seed-stage Japanese startups, extending to early and mid-stage rounds. The firm operates two investment funds (BASE Partners Fund1号 and basepartners2号) and provides capital alongside hands-on management support including resources, operational experience, and network access for startups lacking these assets.

Product overview

BASE Partners is an independent venture capital firm organized by entrepreneurs, focused primarily on seed-stage investments while also supporting early and mid-stage startups. The firm provides hands-on management support including funding, resources, experience, and network access to startups lacking these resources. The firm operates two investment funds: BASE Partners Fund1号投資事業有限責任組合 and basepartners2号投資事業有限責任組合.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• BASE Partners Fund1号投資事業有限責任組合 (BASE Partners Fund 1) The first investment fund managed by BASE Partners, providing seed-stage equity capital to startups alongside hands-on management support. Targeted at Japanese entrepreneurs and their ventures.
• basepartners2号投資事業有限責任組合 (BASE Partners Fund 2) The second investment fund managed by BASE Partners, continuing the firm's seed-stage focus with capital deployment for Japanese startups and hands-on operational support.

Quantifiable outcome

• Founded 2017, established as independent VC with successful track record including UPSIDER and Snkrdunk (SODA) first-round investments

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• RootersminorOthersPartner logo displayed on BASE Partners website. Nature of partnership appears to be portfolio-related or ecosystem support.
• Univis GroupminorOthersPartner logo displayed on BASE Partners website. Nature of partnership appears to be portfolio-related or ecosystem support.
• VC Startup Health Insurance Association (VCスタートアップ健康保険組合)minorOthersPartner logo displayed on BASE Partners website. VC Startup Health Insurance Association provides health insurance services for venture capital and startup ecosystem participants.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• World Innovation Lab (WiL): Japan-and-global early/growth-stage VC; comparable stage range and Japanese HQ, though typically writing larger checks than BASE Partners.
• Coral Capital: Tokyo-based early-stage VC focused on Japanese startups; directly comparable stage and geography, and explicitly named as a co-investor in BASE Partners' portfolio (eSports platform GauG).
• East Ventures: One of the largest early-stage VCs in Japan/SEA; competes directly with BASE Partners for Japanese seed-stage founders and offers similar seed-led, operator-friendly support.
• Genesia Ventures: Tokyo-based seed-stage VC targeting Japanese startups across consumer, SaaS and emerging verticals; directly comparable stage focus and entrepreneur-led positioning.
• Skyland Ventures: Japanese seed-stage VC with a comparable early-stage, founder-friendly investment thesis; competes for similar Tokyo-area seed deals.
• ANRI: Tokyo-based seed/early-stage VC targeting Japanese startups, frequently overlapping with BASE Partners on seed rounds in similar verticals (consumer, SaaS, frontier).
• Globis Capital Partners: Japan-focused early-stage VC; similar seed-to-Series A positioning with comparable entrepreneur-friendly brand and Tokyo-based operations.
• Incubate Fund: Japanese seed-stage VC focused on early-stage founders; closely comparable stage, geography, and hands-on support model.
• Beyond Next Ventures: Tokyo-based early-stage VC with a deep-tech and life-sciences tilt; overlaps with BASE Partners in Japanese seed-stage investing and shares operator-led support ethos.

Broad incumbents

• JAFCO Group: One of Japan's largest and most established VC/PE firms, with overlapping seed-to-growth activity; included as a broad incumbent providing scale context against which BASE Partners competes.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments24 records

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

Frequently asked questions about BASE Partners