From Shelf to Blockchain: Animoca and Ibex Plan to Transform Japan’s Unused Anime IP Into Web3 Products

Japan’s Anime Powerhouses Prepare For Blockchain Era With Animoca And Ibex FundJapan has long been home to some of the world’s most recognisable anime and manga creations, yet industry insiders say much of its intellectual property (IP) never leaves the shelves.At Tokyo’s WebX conference, Ibex Japan partner Sandeep Casi told attendees that “90% to 99% of Japan’s IP is lying dormant on the shelves and has great value.”The new investment fund, created in partnership between Animoca Brands and Ibex Japan, is designed to license and revive these forgotten assets by turning them into blockchain-native products capable of reaching global audiences.We announced at @WebX_Asia a partnership with Ibex, the corporate innovation arm of global VC @AntlerGlobal, to launch a dedicated fund to bring Japan’s anime and manga IP on-chain ⛓️ pic.twitter.com/hUUABjWyQ9— Animoca Brands (@animocabrands) August 26, 2025Why The Partnership Matters NowIbex Japan, backed by Antler’s corporate innovation arm, brings a global reach with 22 cities, $1.2 billion in assets under management, and access to more than 250,000 entrepreneurs.Casi argued that this scale is essential if Japanese IP is to finally find its way to international markets.Animoca, already active in Japan through its subsidiary ABKK, sees the initiative as a chance to move far beyond the usual gaming applications of anime IP.Animoca co-founder and chairman Yat Siu said,“This partnership is about expanding Japanese IP globally.”He also pointed to fintech, healthcare, and medtech as future areas of opportunity.NFT Market Recovery Adds MomentumThe timing of the project coincides with a renewed surge in NFT markets.According to NFT Price Floor, overall market capitalisation jumped from $6.6 billion in July to $9.3 billion by 13 August — a 40% increase in little over a month.📉 The NFT market lost $1.2 billion in less than a week amid a drop in the Ethereum rate.🔻 The total capitalization of collections fell to $8.1 billion, while as of Wednesday it was $9.3 billion (+40% since July).💸 ETH fell by 9%, from $4700 to $4260, which directly hit the… pic.twitter.com/bRImMu7LjY— Crypto Research Network (@CrResearchNet) August 18, 2025Siu highlighted the rebound as an encouraging sign that demand for digital assets is re-emerging, offering a stronger launchpad for the new fund’s ambitions.Next Moves For The FundManagement of the fund will be shared by Casi and Animoca senior adviser Keyvan Peymani, who will act as co-general partners.Their task will be to identify which storylines, characters and cultural assets are best suited for blockchain-native licensing.Specific investment targets are expected to be revealed later this year, with the ambition of creating entirely new Web3 products that tie back to Japan’s cultural heritage.From Anime To Finance What Can Be TokenisedThe effort comes at a time when tokenisation is moving far beyond entertainment.In the United States, Kraken has been in discussions with regulators about launching a blockchain-based trading platform and has already made tokenised U.S. stocks available to non-U.S. users.BREAKING: Wall Street is officially onchain.xStocks are now live on Kraken ❎ 60 U.S. equities tokenized and tradable 24/5. More coming soon.We’re not waiting for the future. We’re building it.👇https://t.co/iKu44ZiwZNNot available in the U.S. or to U.S. persons. Geo… pic.twitter.com/FjOsxDJ9se— Kraken (@krakenfx) June 30, 2025Rival Robinhood has begun offering similar services in Europe.For Animoca and Ibex, they believe Japanese culture could sit alongside equities and other real-world assets as blockchain adoption widens.Can Japan’s Web3 Bet Truly Succeed?Coinlive sees this fund as a daring attempt to breathe new life into Japan’s cultural exports, but the scale of the challenge cannot be ignored.Reviving “dormant” characters and storylines sounds promising, yet translating nostalgia into sustainable digital demand is an unpredictable task.With NFTs still facing questions of long-term value and oversupply, the fund risks being caught between fan expectations and market realities.Unless Animoca and Ibex can move beyond novelty and build real-world utility around anime IP, the initiative could end up as another short-lived experiment in tokenisation rather than the cultural leap it promises to be.