01 / BITS
Digital Intelligence
Computing infrastructure, cloud, security, and payments made by AI agents. I invest in the foundations that support AI.
Read the thesisFROM JAPAN TO GLOBAL
Expand
what feels
possible.
Betting on people and technology,
and on the futures that do not look possible yet.
Make something
people want.
JAPAN → GLOBALPEOPLE × TECHNOLOGY→ POSSIBILITY
About
SERIAL ENTREPRENEUR / VC INVESTOR
Toshiaki Yabe
I am an entrepreneur and investor, backing startups and supporting founders at UTEC. In March 2019, I founded fintech startup Crezit Holdings and raised roughly ¥900M through Series A.
I started in corporate planning and financial management at GE Japan through its Financial Management Program. I then launched BASE BANK and its financial services business at BASE before founding Crezit Holdings. Before joining UTEC, I worked on new business development at Mercari as Head of Merpay CEO Office.
Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia 2021. BA in Business and Commerce, Keio University.
Both sides of the table.
I have built businesses from zero as an entrepreneur and worked alongside a wide range of startups as an investor and VC. Moving between the builder’s reality and the investor’s broader view lets me bring practical judgment to the many stages of a company’s journey.
A DIFFERENT SEAT. THE SAME PERSON.
Entrepreneur.
I founded a fintech business at the intersection of finance and technology, and have launched new businesses across zero-to-one startups, growth-stage companies, and a scaled technology company.
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General ElectricFinancial Management Program
BASE / BASE BANKLaunched financial services
Crezit HoldingsFounded March 2019%20--%3e%3csvg%20version='1.1'%20id='Layer_1'%20xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg'%20xmlns:xlink='http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink'%20x='0px'%20y='0px'%20viewBox='0%200%20448.7%2090'%20style='enable-background:new%200%200%20448.7%2090;'%20xml:space='preserve'%3e%3cstyle%20type='text/css'%3e%20.st0{fill:%23222222;}%20%3c/style%3e%3cpath%20class='st0'%20d='M432.6,24.1h15.3v65.4h-15.3V24.1z%20M268.9,76.9c-12.8,0-20.4-8-20.4-19.1c0-10.9,5.8-20.1,19.3-20.1%20c7,0.1,13.9,1.7,20.1,4.8V28.2c-6.5-2.7-13.4-4.2-20.4-4.2c-20.8,0-34,14.3-34,33.7S248,90,268.7,90c7.1,0,14.2-1.4,20.8-4.1V71.9%20C289.4,71.9,279.5,76.9,268.9,76.9z%20M69.8,24.1c-9,0-14.7,3.2-20.6,10.2c-5.6-6.6-12.2-10.1-21-10.1C11.5,24.1,0,36.6,0,53.3v36.2%20h15.1V51.8c0-8,4.8-14,13.1-14s13.6,6,13.6,14v37.7h14.8V51.8c0-8,5-14,13.2-14s13.8,6,13.8,14v37.7h15.1V53.3%20C98.6,36.6,86.5,24.1,69.8,24.1z%20M440.3,0c4.7,0,8.5,3.8,8.5,8.4s-3.8,8.4-8.5,8.4s-8.5-3.8-8.5-8.4S435.6,0,440.3,0z%20M334.6,24.1%20c-19.2,0-33.2,13.8-33.2,32.9c0,19.4,13.1,32.9,31.8,32.9c9,0,16.6-5.2,19-11.1v10.7h15V57C367.2,37,354.6,24.1,334.6,24.1z%20M334.4,76.7c-11,0-17.9-7.6-17.9-19.7c0-11.2,7.7-19.7,17.9-19.7C345.3,37.3,352,45,352,57C352,66.5,346.1,76.7,334.4,76.7z%20M218.2,37.8c-8.2,0-13.1,6.8-13.1,15.9v35.8h-15V53.3c0-16.7,11.5-29.2,28.1-29.2h5.4v13.7L218.2,37.8z%20M411.7,37.8%20c-8.2,0-13.1,6.8-13.1,15.9v35.8h-15V53.3c0-16.7,11.5-29.2,28.1-29.2h5.4v13.7L411.7,37.8z%20M145,24c-20.3,0-32.4,16.3-32.4,33.1%20c0,20.5,14.8,32.8,35.1,32.8c8.1,0,16.2-1.5,23.8-4.2V72.5c0,0-12,5-23.1,5c-11.3,0-19.2-5-20.6-15.1h45.8c0.3-2.4,0.5-4.8,0.4-7.2%20C174,37,160.2,24,145,24z%20M127.9,50.5c2.2-11.1,10.4-13.9,16.7-13.9c6.9,0,15,4.4,16.2,13.9H127.9z'/%3e%3c/svg%3e)
MercariHead of Merpay CEO Office
Philosophy
Expand what feels possible.
Go beyond the boundaries of imagination. Build businesses with technology, and create a new future together.
- Mission
- Unleash human potential through technology.
- How I act
- Explore. Experiment. Expand. Exponentiate.
Focus
Bits to Atoms.
Atoms to Society.
Intelligence in code moves into the physical world, then into the systems that shape society.
From Bits to Atoms, Atoms to Society: I work at the connections that let technology move the future.
02 / ATOMS
Physical Intelligence
Robots, humanoids, and the data needed to train them. I invest in technology that puts AI to work in the physical world.
Read the thesis
03 / SOCIETY
Economic & Social Systems
Finance, government, and specialist work across industries. I invest where AI is changing how people work and how society operates.
Read the thesisPartnerships
Creating value.
Together.
-
FINANCE
Finance
I help companies find the right financing through a network of more than 100 financial institutions and investors in Japan, including banks, venture debt providers, venture capital firms and CVCs.
Fundraising / Connections with financial institutions and investors
-
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
Industry Partners
I draw on the network I have built as an entrepreneur and business leader to help companies partner with major Japanese corporations and access their business assets and resources.
Corporate partnerships / Access to business assets and resources
-
PRODUCT AND DESIGN
Design Partners
Turn business ideas into products and experiences that work for people. Start by understanding users, then prototype and test to make the value tangible.
User research / Prototyping / Experience design
-
COMMUNITY
Founder Community
Alongside connections to venture capital, I offer a network of fellow entrepreneurs. I am building a community where founders share experience and insights and support one another.
Founder networks / Shared experience and insights
-
AI & TECHNOLOGY
Technology Partnerships
Bring AI, software, and robotics into real business settings. Help technical teams and business teams validate ideas together and shape solutions people can use.
Technical validation / PoCs / Business implementation
Selected Work
What I’m
Building.
Live products and what comes next.
-
Live
Plexa
An AI Chief of Staff for meeting preparation, research and reply drafts, informed by your schedule and conversations.
Visit website ↗ — Plexa -
Live
Vocabuild
An iOS vocabulary app for learning meanings, pronunciation and usage, then making them stick through review.
Visit website ↗ — Vocabuild -
Live
T.Y. Bear
A curious character inspired by “Trust your gut.” Explore his world, pick a pose and play together in 3D.
Visit website ↗ — T.Y. Bear -
In development
Surf AI
An agent that optimizes how you gather AI information.
Previous work
-
YELL BANK
Turning future shop sales into funding today.
-
CREZITMobile Credit
Consumer credit with registration and borrowing completed on a smartphone.
-
ZENCredit as a Service
Helping businesses embed lending in their own services.
Recognition
Selected milestones.
Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia
Selected in Finance & Venture Capital.
Portfolio
Double down
on people.
Founded Ventures
The company I founded
Angel Investment
Startups I back personally
-
TAIAN
Angel · TokyoBuilding several products for Japan's ¥20 trillion celebration market, from weddings and events to gifts, under the vision of moving the world through celebration.
-
Flexii
Angel · SingaporeA Singapore staffing platform that fills part-time shifts with pre-vetted workers in minutes, with no payroll admin for the business.
- Stealth startup Angel · StealthOne more company, still in stealth. It joins this list once it can be named.
Podcast
Conversations
that move us.
Beat the Odds
Conversations with founders, behind the scenes and beyond.
Where do founders see possibility, and what do they bet on? Beat the Odds explores the choices behind their ventures and the questions that still have no easy answers.
Bringing the perspective of an investor and the experience of a builder to every conversation.
