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Xinmei Shen

Hong Kong-based blockchain video gaming firm Animoca Brands is weighing options for a public listing, possibly in Hong Kong or the Middle East, as early as late next year.
“It’s contingent on many factors, but we feel confident that we will go public,” Siu said in a statement to the Post on Thursday. “And if that happens, it’s likely in the second half of 2025.”
Siu is considering listing in Animoca’s home city of Hong Kong or a Middle Eastern market, he told technology news publication The Information, which first reported the initial public offering plans on Wednesday. Dubai has become a hotspot for crypto business.

However, a possible IPO is still in its early planning stages, and the company has not yet hired an adviser, Siu told the Post.
Returning to the public market – after delisting in Australia in March 2020 amid scrutiny of its cryptocurrency activities – is about “bringing more attention to Web3”, the entrepreneur said.
“If you consider what companies like Coinbase have done for US attention in Web3, it’s a good example of a successful case to bring more focus on Web3,” Siu said. “We hope to achieve something similar in due course.”
As a Hong Kong-based company, Siu said he hopes a future IPO would also bring more attention to Asian markets.
Founded in 2014, Animoca Brands has become a major investor in the Web3 ecosystem, boasting a vast portfolio of more than 400 blockchain start-ups. It is also known for its metaverse platform The Sandbox, which gained popularity at the peak of non-fungible token (NFTs) hype and the metaverse boom 2021.
In its last publicly announced valuation, Animoca was worth US$5.9 billion after a US$75 million funding round in July 2022. Its investors include HongShan, formerly Sequoia Capital China, Singapore’s state fund Temasek Holdings, and Saudi Arabia’s government-backed smart city project Neom Company, which last year put US$50 million into Animoca.
Animoca’s fortunes have risen this year along with the value of cryptocurrencies after bitcoin hit an all-time high. Siu previously told the Post this would have a “material impact” on the company this year. Much of Animoca’s financial holdings are in crypto assets, which it divides into liquid and off-balance sheet reserves, including Sand, the native token of The Sandbox.
The company had a combined cash and stablecoin balance of US$291 million by the end of March, according to an unaudited financial report it published in April. That was up from US$194 million in April 2023.
In late 2022, Hong Kong unveiled a policy shift meant to support the virtual asset industry and attract business to the city. Its mandatory licensing regime that took effect in June last year has been seen by many as unusually onerous, however, owing to high compliance costs relative to limited opportunities in the market.
A handful of crypto exchanges, most with connections to mainland China, where commercial crypto activity is banned, recently withdrew their applications.
Siu, though, remains optimistic. Recent developments do not diminish Hong Kong’s status as a crypto hub “because not many jurisdictions even have a regime for it”, he said.
“Hong Kong is balancing the requirements, and we know that they’re very serious about this,” he added. “But this is part of the evolution.”


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Blockchain

Hong Kong blockchain gaming firm Animoca weighing 2025-26 IPO, founder says

Animoca Brands is the biggest Web3 company in Hong Kong, with a portfolio of more than 400 start-ups. Photo: Shutterstock

Yat Siu, co-founder of Animoca Brands, speaks during a panel session at the Qatar Economic Forum (QEF) in Doha, Qatar, on May 24, 2023. Photo: Bloomberg

Tether co-founder Brock Pierce teases possible return to Hong Kong, says China will open to cryptocurrencies

Cryptocurrency investor Brock Pierce addresses the Solowin and Sequire Asia Investor Summit on May 29, 2024. Photo: Solowin and Sequire Asia Investor Summit

Hong Kong crypto exchange licence applicants with ties to mainland China withdraw from city

Pedestrians walk past an advertisement in Hong KOng displaying a bitcoin cryptocurrency token on February 15, 2022. Photo: Getty Images

Hong Kong’s Animoca Brands gets in on Saudi Arabia’s Web3 ground floor with early investment, partnerships

A game on Animoca Brands’ metaverse platform The Sandbox, where people can socialise, play games and attend concerts. Photo: The Sandbox

The Animoca Brands team, including co-founder Yat Siu (sixth from right), poses with the team from Neom in Saudi Arabia’s smart city on December 11, 2023. Photo: Animoca Brands

Animoca Brands CEO Robby Yung (right) discusses video gaming and education at Saudi Arabia’s Leap technology conference on March 6, 2024. Photo: Animoca Brands

Hong Kong’s Animoca Brands secures US$50 million from Saudi state project to promote regional Web3 development

Under an agreement with Neom Company, a Saudi Vision 2030 smart city project, Animoca aims to ‘nurture the local Web3 ecosystem’. Photo: Shutterstock 

Neom Company is a Saudi Vision 2030 smart city project. Photo: Handout 

Hong Kong crypto unicorns Animoca Brands and HashKey strike partnership deal as industry gears up for market recovery

Cryptocurrency unicorns Animoca Brands and HashKey agree to partnership. Photo: Handout  

Animoca Brands co-founder and chairman Yat Siu(Left) and HashKey Group CEO Livio Weng. Photo: Handout

Tech

Tech Trends

Policy

Animoca Brands co-founder Yat Siu said he hopes an IPO will bring ‘more attention to Web3’ and Asian markets, with a possible Hong Kong listing


Animoca Brands co-founder Yat Siu said he hopes an IPO will bring ‘more attention to Web3’ and Asian markets, with a possible Hong Kong listing.
