[Digital Today reporter Jae-won Choi (최재원)] Japan's financial group SBI Holdings is joining hands with major entertainment company Yoshimoto Kogyo Holdings to target the global content market. It plans to promote the overseas expansion of Japanese content and a new fundraising model using an investment fund worth 100 billion yen and digital securities technology.

CoinPost reported on Oct. 14 (local time) that SBI Holdings and Yoshimoto Kogyo Holdings announced they had agreed in principle on a strategic business partnership in the entertainment sector and on setting up a joint venture.

Through the joint venture, the two companies plan to plan and develop original intellectual property (IP) targeting the global market and invest in content production.

They will combine SBI Group's financial technology with Yoshimoto Kogyo's content production capabilities. Yoshimoto Kogyo manages about 6,000 entertainers and sports players and runs content businesses including broadcasting, films and performances.

A key element is fundraising using digital securities. SBI is exploring ways to introduce new financial methods for content investment using the infrastructure for issuing security tokens (ST) and blockchain-based financial technology.

Specific plans, including the structure for actually issuing digital securities and when the business will be implemented, were not disclosed.

The two companies will also use the 100 billion yen SBI Neo Content Fund formed by SBI Group. Yoshimoto Kogyo will also invest in the fund and push investments across a wide range of fields including films, performances, sports, animation and games.

Overseas expansion is also a key area of cooperation. The companies plan to expand business from content planning to overseas distribution, performances and merchandise sales using SBI's network in Asia and the Middle East.

They also plan to produce content using regional culture and tourism resources. The idea is to revitalise Japan's local content industry and create new jobs and business opportunities.

The partnership is seen as an example of extending SBI's "neo-media ecosystem" strategy, which combines finance and media, into the entertainment industry.