Kaz Hadano, CEO, Sony Ventures Corporation, is one of the 100 leading corporate venturing professionals in our 2025 Powerlist.

As CEO of Sony Ventures, Kaz Hadano coordinates a global investment team spread across Japan, the US, Europe, Israel, India and Kenya. He says a key policy for “minimising communication gaps” is to rotate staff to avoid siloing.

It is one of the methods by which the Japanese entertainment and electronics conglomerate’s CVC arm stays ahead of investment opportunities, wherever they might arise.
The unit invests in a number of tech areas, reflecting the diverse business interests of its parent company, including climate tech startups and deep tech sectors such as quantum computing, advanced materials and semiconductors. It also invests in fintech and Web3 technology, which supports Sony’s move into crypto with the launch of its own L2 chain, Soneium. “We are eager to leverage blockchain technology to develop new services in entertainment,” says Hadano.
Hadano assumed the role in January last year, after a year-long transition period. Before that, he was managing director of Sony Global Treasury Services, a subsidiary overseeing the group’s foreign exchange and fund management.
“We are eager to leverage blockchain technology to develop new services in entertainment.”
He says one distinguishing feature of Sony Ventures as a CVC unit is the strong commitment from top executives at Sony, who actively monitor the venturing activity. The CVC also has strong relationships with the business units.
“This is immensely beneficial for post-investment activities,” he says. “In some cases, our business groups adopt solutions from portfolio companies or launch joint projects, creating value on both sides.”
He points to three portfolio companies that reached unicorn status, including Scandit, a Swiss data capture technology startup, and the fintech startups Slice and WealthNavi. Its most recent investments include the UK graphene photonics chip maker Camgraphic, the Japanese donation DX provider Congrant and the German CMOS-based analogue chip maker Gemesys.
Hadano cites three recent exits as a success for the unit. Two companies went public in the Japanese market in March: Mirairo, a DX service provider to support disabled people, and Toyokoh, which offers various solutions for renewing ageing infrastructure and construction. Adhawk, a US startup making eye-tracking technology, was acquired by Google.

The Global Corporate Venturing Powerlist represents the 100 individuals spearheading the future of the corporate venturing industry.
These individuals excel in terms of their venturing approach and structure, number and quality of portfolio companies and in their contributions to the corporate venturing profession.