Softbank Capital raises $51 million to invest in New York-based tech startups

Softbank Capital, a venture capital group in the US affiliated with Japanese telecommunications company Softbank, has raised $51.02 million in new funding to invest in technology startups based in New York.

The firm said in a statement that its New York partner Jordan Levy will oversee investments, which will be focused on the high-growth sectors of social, ecommerce and software.

Earlier this month, Softbank Capital led a $10 million round of investment into Work Market, a service that connects employers and freelancers in the business and enterprise space.

Softbank Capital had previously invested in a few New York-based startups that saw successful acquisitions, among them Buddy Media acquired by Salesforce.com, Huffington Post bought by AOL and OMGPOP acquired by Zynga.

The venture capital group isn’t just focusing on New York; it has also been pushing for US firms to expand their presence in Asia. Earlier this year it announced it would channel $250 million worth of funding to leading technology companies seeking to expand their presence in Asia, as well as a $20 million investment from Yahoo! Japan targeted at U.S. startups looking to break into the Japanese market.

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