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HIRAC Fund

www.hirac.co.jp · Tokyo, Japan

Investment thesis

Back entrepreneurs using technology to solve social problems and revitalize regions in Japan, supported by Money Forward group assets and regional bank LP networks.

Up to $650K
Check Size
Leads & Follows
Lead Tendency
$134B
AUM
01Investment Thesis

Back entrepreneurs using technology to solve social problems and revitalize regions in Japan, supported by Money Forward group assets and regional bank LP networks.

02Investment Team
NK
Naoya Kanasaka
Co-founder and Representative Partner (CEO, Money Forward Venture Partners)
KO
Koji Okada
Partner
TS
Takumi Sato
Partner, Relationships
HJ
Hirotaka Jinno
Partner
YH
Yutaro Hiyama
Director
SF
Satoshi Furuhashi
Co-founder; Director and Investment Committee member
03F4 Research Brief

HIRAC Fund Research

Overview

HIRAC FUND is the venture capital arm of Money Forward, the Tokyo-listed fintech and SaaS group. It is run by Money Forward Venture Partners, Inc., a wholly owned Money Forward subsidiary founded on 2020-05-25 and based in Shibaura, Minato-ku, Tokyo. The fund was started by entrepreneurs to back the next generation of founders. The official site is www.hirac.co.jp; the bare domain hirac.co.jp currently shows a Wix domain-connection error, so the www host is the live one.

Investment Thesis

HIRAC invests in technology-driven solutions to social problems and regional revitalization in Japan. It leans on four assets: startup founding and IPO experience, Fintech and SaaS knowledge, a community of entrepreneurs (25 or more founders and executives invested as individuals in Fund I), and ties to regional banks. Fund III names seven priority themes: B2B enterprise AX/DX (AI transformation), industry-specific DX, platforms, Japan soft power (entertainment, food, tourism), brand businesses, healthcare and welfare, and emerging technology (AI, robotics, deep tech, space).

Stage Focus

Mainly seed and early stage, including pre-Series A and Series A. Earlier profiles describe a typical total of up to about 100 million yen per company including follow-ons, with valuations often under 1 billion yen at entry.

Check Size

StartupList (2022) put typical investment at up to roughly 100 million yen (about 650K USD) including follow-ons. That figure predates Fund III and is dated, so confidence is moderate.

Lead Tendency

Leads rounds when the situation calls for it, per StartupList. It also invests alongside other funds. Marked as both.

Fund History and Recent Activity

  • Fund I (2020): 3.04 billion yen. 25 portfolio companies, 3 IPOs and 2 M&A exits. Management states DPI of about 126% as of the end of June 2026 after planned distributions.
  • Fund II (2022): 9.08 billion yen final close.
  • Fund I Extension (final close announced 2025-06-16).
  • Total managed: about 13.4 billion yen across funds; 54 companies invested to date (June 2026).
  • Fund III (first close 2026-06-30): about 4.7 billion yen, target above 10 billion yen. Interim close on 2026-10-16 brought it to about 6.7 billion yen.
  • Fund III's first deal, in July 2026, was Mofuku Rescue, an unmanned 24-hour mourning-wear rental chain with 22 stores.
  • Seed investee Salowin was acquired by Hulic Group in June 2026.

Fund III LPs include Aichi Bank, Aomori Michinoku Bank, Iwate Bank, Kiyo Bank, Keiyo Bank, San-in Godo Bank, Bank of China (Chugoku), Tokushima Taisho Bank, Yamanashi Chuo Bank, Money Forward, Mizuho Securities and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank. About 19 regional banks and credit unions are LPs across the funds, and the fund hosts trainees seconded from LPs (20 to date).

Portfolio Highlights

Named in public sources: Salowin (beauty-salon sharing platform, acquired by Hulic), Meety (casual-interview recruiting platform), TENTIAL (wellness products), TENET (online clinics and digital therapeutics), AiCAN (child-abuse prevention SaaS) and Mofuku Rescue. The portfolio section on the official site is a logo wall with no readable captions, so the full list of 54 companies could not be extracted.

Team

  • Naoya Kanasaka: Co-founder and Representative Partner; CEO of Money Forward Venture Partners; Money Forward director and CFO; ex-Goldman Sachs.
  • Satoshi Furuhashi: Co-founder; stepped back from Partner in July 2025 but remains a director and Investment Committee member; founded Smart Camp (BOXIL).
  • Koji Okada: Partner since July 2025; ex-MUFG Bank; leads fundraising and LP collaboration; launched the Key Site workspace in Wakayama.
  • Takumi Sato: Partner, relationships; ex-Money Forward financial-institution business lead.
  • Hirotaka Jinno: Partner; ex-Barclays investment banking; joined 2020; sits on 3 portfolio boards.
  • Yutaro Hiyama: Director; ex-EY tax; emerging tech, ESG and healthcare.
  • Taku Tsuji (Money Forward CEO) sat on the Investment Committee per 2022 profiles.

Decision Process

Partnership with an Investment Committee. Process per StartupList: first meeting, extra meetings as needed, meetings with three IC members, IC, then full due diligence. A pitch deck with a numeric appendix is requested. Criteria are market size and growth, traction, and founder management and communication ability. Prefers deep pain points, social significance and credible scalability.

Founder Preferences

Founders attacking deep pains with social significance, a path to fast growth and credible scale. Hands-on support covers venture debt, CXO hiring, PR and back-office setup, and use of Money Forward group assets such as Money Forward ME distribution.

Geographic Focus

Mainly Japan nationwide, with some overseas investment. Regional expansion through bank LPs is a distinguishing feature, including a startup hub in Wakayama.

Gaps

The 54-company portfolio list is not public in readable text, so only press-confirmed names are recorded. Check size is from a 2022 source.

04Selected Portfolio
Consumer Apps & Social
Salowin·TENTIAL
E-commerce & Marketplaces
Mofuku Rescue
Fintech & Payments
Tenet
HR Tech & Future of Work
Meety
Manufacturing & Industrial
AiCAN
Open the full portfolio→
05Recent Updates

Fresh signals from public announcements, essays, and portfolio activity.

See full activity (5) →
Completed an interim close of Fund III at about 6.7B yen, targeting over 10B yen.
NEW FUND·prtimes.jp
OCT 16, 2026
Invested in Mofuku Rescue, an unmanned 24-hour mourning-wear rental chain, as the first Fund III deal.
INVESTMENT·prtimes.jp
JUL 8, 2026
First close of Fund III at about 4.7B yen with regional bank LPs.
NEW FUND·corp.moneyforward.com+1
JUN 30, 2026
Seed portfolio company Salowin joined Hulic Group as a wholly owned subsidiary through M&A.
EXIT·corp.moneyforward.com
JUN 2026
Strengthened the team ahead of Fund III with three new Partners and a new Director.
TEAM CHANGE·prtimes.jp
JUL 2025
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Quick Reference
Check Size
Up to $650K
Stages
Seed · Series A
AUM
$134B
Decision
Investment Committee
Warm Intro
Not Required
Involvement
Advisor
Location
Tokyo, Japan
Sector Focus
Travel & HospitalityEnterprise SoftwareFood & BeverageMedia & EntertainmentHealthcare & Digital Health
Models
B2B SaaSPlatformsConsumer Brands
Technology
AI/MLRoboticsDeep Tech
See all Travel & Hospitality investors →See all Enterprise Software investors →See all Food & Beverage investors →
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Focus Areas
Travel & HospitalityEnterprise SoftwareFood & BeverageMedia & EntertainmentHealthcare & Digital Health

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F4 Intelligence Report · Last Researched November 6, 2026F4 Research Engine