Telecoms investment funds had a boom in 2014-16 which has not been repeated since. But 2021 saw signs of an uptick with telcos in emerging markets creating investment funds.

Telefónica Ventures head of investments Pablo Moro tells Global Venturing Web3 and the metaverse are now among its priorities, with play-to-earn, tokenisation, VR and AR among the potential strategic areas.

Job moves in the investment arms of telecoms companies over the past year, many of them involving rotation at SoftBank.

Corporate investors shied away from big funding rounds for telecoms startups, with the value of deals down to $2.42bn in 2021 from $5.14bn the year before.

As telecoms networks continue to expand their services, what even counts as a strategic investment these days? A selection of industry figures tell Global Venturing it can include Web3, ESG and 5G-related technologies.

Telecoms companies had 91 exits for their portfolio companies last year, with an estimated total value of $50bn.

The Telstra-sponsored venture firm has already begun investing through its third fund, which has now achieved a $350m final close.

SoftBank, Bristol Myers Squibb and Hitachi were among Arsenal Biosciences’ $220m round while MegaChips led a $140m round for Morse Micro.