SILICON VALLEY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr 21, 2026--
Pegasus Tech Ventures, a global venture capital firm focused on startup investments and corporate innovation, today announced the expansion of its corporate venture capital (CVC) fund in partnership with Japanet Holdings Co., Ltd., the leading Japanese home shopping retailer Japanet TAKATA, bringing the total fund size to US$200 million.
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Pegasus is the General Partner of the fund, and Japanet is the sole Limited Partner. With this structure, 100% of the fund is committed to strategic investments for Japanet in leading global mega-ventures as well as next-generation startups with breakthrough technologies in Generative AI, Physical AI, Space Tech, and other frontier innovation sectors.
Japanet and Pegasus have already been collaborating for approximately four years, with Pegasus providing Japanet with access to the startup ecosystems centered in the United States, Europe and Japan. During this period, they have made investments in several mega-startups, including SpaceX, OpenAI, Anthropic, and xAI, all of which have achieved significant growth.
Pegasus also provides Japanet with direct connections to portfolio investments, enabling Japanet to pursue deeper relationships with these companies, frequently including commercial relationships. Through these hands-on efforts, Japanet has steadily achieved both strategic and financial results. Based on this track record, the decision has been made to expand the fund size and advance into a full-scale global investment phase.
Comment from Akito Takata, President & CEO of Japanet Group:
“At Japanet, we value the three-step philosophy of 'Discovering, Polishing, and Communicating.' In the first stage of 'Discovering'—finding hidden gems around the world—our partnership with Pegasus Tech Ventures and their global community has been truly invaluable. Moving forward, we are excited to continue leveraging this fund to seek out the world’s latest technologies and create new value that brings more joy and enrichment to our customers' everyday lives.”
Comment from Anis Uzzaman, Founder & CEO of Pegasus Tech Ventures:
“Over the past four years, we have built a strong relationship of trust with the Japanet Group. Leveraging our firm positioning in the United States and our global access originating from Silicon Valley, we have provided investment opportunities in startups driving the world’s mega-trends. With this US$200 million fund, we will further accelerate investments that are expected to generate both strategic and financial returns in the fields of Generative AI, Physical AI, and Space Tech.”
About Japanet Group
Under its corporate philosophy of “Joy of sharing happy moments”, the Japanet Group operates a mail-order/e-commerce business alongside sports and regional revitalization businesses. The core of its operations lies in “discovering” quality products, services, regional attractions, entertainment, and information that are hidden from the world, “polishing” their appeal, and “communicating” them in an easy-to-understand manner. The Group is committed to enriching the “present” for all those connected to it, addressing a range of social issues not only through “healthy management” practices, but also through “educational support for children around the world” and “disaster relief support.” For more information, please visit: https://corporate.japanet.co.jp/en/
About Pegasus Tech Ventures
Pegasus Tech Ventures is a global venture capital firm headquartered in Silicon Valley, backed by limited partners that include more than 40 major corporations worldwide, making Pegasus the world’s leading provider of CVC management services. Pegasus focuses on supporting corporate innovation and accelerating corporate growth on a global scale. The firm has invested in world-class companies such as SpaceX, OpenAI, Anthropic, Twitter (now X), Airbnb, SoFi, DoorDash, and Coinbase, as well as other prominent startups around the world. To date, Pegasus has invested in more than 290 startups globally, with assets under management totaling over USD $2 billion. For more details, please visit: https://www.pegasustechventures.com
Pegasus Tech Ventures and Japanet Expand Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) Fund to US$200 Million
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are holding firm Tuesday after UnitedHealth Group and other big companies showed they’re making even bigger profits than analysts expected. Oil prices, meanwhile, remained relatively stable as optimism seems to be sticking in financial markets that the United States and Iran will avoid a worst-case scenario for the economy, even with their war ongoing.
The S&P 500 added 0.2%, coming off just its second drop in 14 days, and is close to another all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 397 points, or 0.8%, as of 9:50 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.1% higher.
UnitedHealth helped lead the market with a jump of 9.4% after reporting stronger profit and revenue for the beginning of the year than analysts expected. It also raised its forecast for profit over the full year of 2026.
That’s big because stock prices tend to follow the path of corporate profits over the long term. It’s a double-plus for investors when companies not only top earnings estimates but also forecast even better growth ahead.
Quest Diagnostics rose 5.8% after it likewise joined the fattening list of companies topping expectations for profit and revenue during the latest quarter. It also raised its forecast for profit for the full year.
They helped offset an 8.3% drop for Tractor Supply, whose profit and revenue for the latest quarter fell short of expectations.
Other signals are also indicating the U.S. economy may be doing OK despite the sharp up-and-down swings for oil prices because of the war with Iran. A report on Tuesday morning showed that U.S. retailers made more money in March, the first full month of the war, than analysts expected.
Growth was even relatively stable for retail sales when not including those from gasoline stations.
“It’s become cliched to say that the economic hit will depend on the duration of the Middle East conflict, but that cliché does ring true,” according to Brian Jacobsen, chief economic strategist at Annex Wealth Management.
The price for a barrel of Brent crude oil, the international standard, dipped 0.7% to $94.78 ahead of the scheduled expiration early Wednesday, Tehran time, of a U.S.-Iran ceasefire agreement. Both sides are continuing to talk tough, but hope remains after both have signaled they will hold a new round of ceasefire talks in Pakistan.
Much of the tension in financial markets has focused on what will happen to the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway off Iran’s coast that oil tankers use to exit the Persian Gulf. A long-term closure would keep crude oil pent up in the gulf and away from customers worldwide.
The price of a barrel of Brent oil has gone from roughly $70 before the war to $119 at times as worries have risen and fallen about a long-term closure for the strait.
On Wall Street, Apple slipped 0.6% after Tim Cook said he’ll step down as CEO on Sept. 1 and become the iPhone maker’s executive chairman. He’s handing control over to John Ternus, a company veteran who rose through the iPhone maker’s hardware engineering ranks.
Amazon rose 1.4% after Anthropic said it signed a new agreement and is committing more than $100 billion over the next 10 years to AWS technologies to train and run its Claude chatbot.
In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed in Europe following a stronger finish in Asia. South Korea’s Kospi rose 2.7% for one of the world’s biggest moves.
In the bond market, Treasury yields edged higher. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.27% from 4.26% late Monday.
Kevin Warsh, President Donald Trump's nominee to chair the Federal Reserve, will be speaking on Capitol Hill later Tuesday. He'll face a tightrope walk, as investors will want to see if he would keep the Fed's independence from political meddling even though Trump has been pushing hard for lower interest rates.
AP Business Writers Matt Ott and Elaine Kurtenbach contributed to this report.
Specialist James Denaro works at his post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Monday, April 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
A dealer walks past the screen showing the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A dealer walks past the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A dealer watches computer monitors at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A dealer stands near the screens showing the foreign exchange rates at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A dealer walks past the screens showing the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Trader Michael Milano, left, works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Monday, April 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
