Global Enterprise Software Firm R3’s Development Fund Reaches $10M in Capital Deployed to Blockchain Startups

Global enterprise software company R3’s Development Fund has reportedy reached the milestone of $10 million in capital deployed “across over 30 investments in more than 20 of the most promising early-stage blockchain and confidential computing companies,” according to a release shared with CI.

As noted in the announcement:

“The Fund invests in innovative start-ups building apps on R3’s enterprise blockchain platform, Corda, and its new confidential computing platform, Conclave. The Fund launched in 2019 to support firms leveraging blockchain for global commerce and to further establish R3’s presence in financial services, trade finance, insurance and digital assets.”

Key achievements of the Fund include:

  • 30+ investments to date, “across ~20 companies in financial services, trade finance, insurance, digital assets, and other sectors.”
  • Total capital “deployed to date is ~USD 10 million, with more than sufficient funding to continue investment activity in 2021 and beyond.”
  • Received 250+ “inbound investment opportunities since inception.”

As mentioned in the release, with the launch of Conclave, the Fund has managed to expand its investment thesis to include high-potential startups developing with the confidential computing software. Although the Fund’s main objective is to promote the adoption of Corda and Conclave in R3’s primary markets, it takes “an opportunistic approach in other non-core segments such as digital advertising, media, healthcare and more.”

The Fund’s portfolio firms show considerable progress in product and business development, the release noted while adding that during Q3 and Q4 of last year, during the height of COVID-related economic crisis, almost a third of the Fund’s portfolio firms “marked up their valuation through either equity or convertible loan note fundraises. The portfolio valuation is now at a historic highwater mark.”

As stated in the release:

“R3 leads the largest enterprise blockchain ecosystem in the world, comprised of hundreds of firms building and deploying applications on Corda, as well as institutions collectively exploring and embracing its technology to solve real-world problems. The Fund’s positions, a select subset of these firms, are all building forward-thinking, use-case specific enterprise products and solutions on Corda.”

As explained in the announcement, the Fund devotes considerable “human capital resources” to assist with supporting portfolio firms with Go-To-Market assistance, legal and regulatory insights, technical consultation and a “robust co-investor community.”

David E. Rutter, CEO at R3, stated:

“R3’s strength is derived from its community, which includes a diverse range of start-ups from a myriad of industries – from insurance to education, supply chain finance to payment messaging – building and deploying apps for customers across the globe. The R3 Development Fund is already known in these industries as an expert strategic investor with a strong track record in backing the most promising early-stage companies.”

Rutter added:

“As ever at R3, collaboration is a key pillar of the Fund’s work. Now, more so than ever before, we recognise the importance and value of partnership and work very closely with all of our portfolio companies to provide support across a multitude of aspects, from fundraising to product and business development. We are excited to see so many of them going from strength to strength.”

R3 is an enterprise software company that claims it is “pioneering” digital industry transformation.

Developed in collaboration with their fast-evolving ecosystem, R3’s enterprise blockchain or DLT platform Corda is “transforming entire industries by digitalizing the processes and systems that firms rely on to connect and transact with each other.”

By leveraging Confidential Computing and Intel SGX, Conclave aims to simplify the development of softwware apps that offer greater transparency into how data is “collected and processed.” R3 clients and partners also have access to a network of systems integrators, Cloud service providers, tech companies, software vendors, corporates, and banking institutions.

To ensure its clients derive the most value from their strategic investment, R3 offers key services and support to “shorten time-to-market, as well as guidance on implementation, integration, and building ecosystems.”



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