What stage does iSGS Investment Works invest at?

iSGS Investment Works invests at the Seed stage.

What sectors does iSGS Investment Works focus on?

iSGS Investment Works focuses on Crypto & Web3, Sector Agnostic.

Where is iSGS Investment Works located?

iSGS Investment Works is headquartered in Tokyo, JP.

iSGS Investment Works

Venture capital

Tokyo · Seed · 4 people tracked

Also known as 株式会社iSGSインベストメントワークス

★ Follow + Add to CRM ⤳ Find an introduction

Find your way into iSGS Investment Works

Paths you didn't know you had: your email and LinkedIn already hold routes to the iSGS Investment Works team. We find them
2nd- and 3rd-degree connections: the friend-of-a-friend routes you can't see from your own inbox or LinkedIn
Answers now, not in days: momentum is everything in a raise. Skip asking around whether someone knows someone

Days of research, done the moment you sign in, with every route ranked by how warm it is.

✨ Fox Verdict

Investment thesis

iSGS Investment Works positions itself as a partner that seeks more than a simple IPO from the companies it backs. The firm emphasizes ambition, challenging founders to articulate their vision, and commits to working alongside them intensively. It frames every milestone as the beginning of the next stage rather than an endpoint, reflecting a long-term, hands-on approach to backing early-stage ventures in Japan.

Invests inCrypto & Web3Sector AgnosticAsia-Pacific Japan Tokyo

Source: firm website, verified Sep 27, 2026.

Leave your own feedback

Stage

Seed

Tokyo, JP

Instruments

Equity

Founded

2016

Tracked investments

Team · 4 people

from the firm's website

Kei Sugawara· Director / Representative Partner

Worked as a strategy and technology consultant for about nine years starting at Andersen Consulting (now Accenture) in 1996 and Arthur D. Little Japan in 2000. He joined istyle at its founding, becoming a standing director in 2004 and later serving as CTO and CFO, with notable investments including Allied Architects, gumi, and Fringe81. He co-founded iSGS Investment Works in 2016 as a director and representative partner.

Makiko Sato· Representative Director / Representative Partner

Joined CyberAgent in 2000 as its first new-graduate cohort, working in internet advertising and winning an MVP award in 2002 before becoming the company's first female sales manager. After a new-business role at Wedding Park and nine years of seed-stage venture investing at CyberAgent Capital from 2006, she co-founded iSGS Investment Works in 2016 as reportedly Japan's first female partner at an independent VC, and became Representative Director in 2023. She was named to a Forbes Japan list of influential women in Japanese VC in 2022 and joined the board of the Japan Venture Capital Association in 2024.

佐藤真希子· 代表取締役兼代表パートナー

Joined CyberAgent in 2000 as its first new-graduate cohort, working in internet advertising and becoming the company's first female sales manager. After a stint at Wedding Park, she spent nine years in seed-stage startup investing at CyberAgent Capital, then co-founded iSGS Investment Works in 2016, becoming representative director in 2023. Named to Japan Venture Capital Association's board in 2024 and to Forbes Japan's list of influential women in VC in 2022.

菅原敬· 取締役兼代表パートナー

Began as a strategy and technology consultant at Andersen Consulting (now Accenture) and Arthur D. Little Japan. Joined istyle at its founding, later serving as CTO, subsidiary CEO, and currently director and CFO. Co-founded iSGS Investment Works in 2016.

What they invest in

from 4 of 4 portfolio companies

Consumer ×2Media & Entertainment ×2Social ×2AI & Machine Learning ×1Creator Economy ×1Fintech ×1Future of Work ×1HR Tech ×1

HQs:United States×2Japan×1

Investments · 4 tracked

founders shown can be your intro path

By year:2022 · 1 2016 · 23 dated

株式会社ベター・プレイスbpcom.jp 𝕏✓ verified

Better Place (ベター・プレイス) is a Japanese company founded with a mission to contribute to making the world better through meaningful encounters and positive influence.

FintechFuture of WorkHR TechSaaSTokyo, JP

Morimoto(Representative (CEO))森本新士(代表取締役社長CEO)

Co-investors15th Rock Iwagin Mirai Investment Iyogin Capital Oita Venture Capital UTokyo Innovation Platform Co. Ltd.Dual Bridge Capital +6 more

East Meet Easteastmeeteast.com 𝕏Nov 2016 · $1M

EastMeetEast (EME Hive) is a dating app that matches Asian singles based on cultural criteria.

ConsumerMarketplacesSocialNew York, US

Mariko Tokioka(Founder)Ejima Kentaro(Executive Officer, Director)KENTARO EJIMA(Executive Officer, Director)

BoardKenji Yamazaki(Director)

Co-investorsDG Daiwa Ventures Mobile Internet Capital, Inc.500 Global DG Lab Fund Digital Garage East Ventures

East Meet Eastemehive.co 𝕏Nov 2016 · $1M

EastMeetEast is a dating platform for Asian singles built with unique cultural matching criteria.

ConsumerImpact & Social GoodMedia & EntertainmentSocial

Kenn EjimaMariko Tokioka

Co-investors500 Global DG Lab Fund Digital Garage East Ventures Mobile Internet Capital, Inc.

SOUNDRAW Inc.soundraw.io in 𝕏Jul 2022

SOUNDRAW is an AI music generator that creates royalty-free, legally licensed tracks trained exclusively on in-house produced music.

AI & Machine LearningCreator EconomyMedia & Entertainment

Co-investorsANOBAKA APOLLO CAPITAL Carbide Ventures mint VC DEEPCORE Inc.SMBC Venture Capital

Frequently asked questions

What stage does iSGS Investment Works invest at?: iSGS Investment Works invests at the Seed stage.
What sectors does iSGS Investment Works focus on?: iSGS Investment Works focuses on Crypto & Web3, Sector Agnostic.
Where is iSGS Investment Works located?: iSGS Investment Works is headquartered in Tokyo, JP.

Similar investors

AirTree Ventures

AirTree Ventures runs Pathfinders, a free four-week in-person program in Sydney for young builders (high-school graduates up to age 23) to work on a real product, access the AirTree team and founders, and build a peer network.

$132K – $16.5M

Andreessen Horowitz

Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) is a venture capital firm founded in 2009 by Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, known for pioneering the platform model with a large team of operators supporting founders across stages.

$500K – $50M

B Capital Group

B Capital is a global investment firm backing early to late-stage technology innovators across technology, healthcare, and energy & resilience sectors.

$10M – $50M

Bessemer Venture Partners

Bessemer Venture Partners is a global venture capital firm that partners with entrepreneurs across enterprise, consumer, and healthcare sectors from early stages through growth.

$50K – $100M

Index Ventures

Index Ventures is a venture capital firm that backs founders across industries and geographies, emphasizing the people behind ideas as much as the businesses themselves.

$540K – $10.8M