# Taro Fukuyama

> Taro Fukuyama is a Japanese entrepreneur and investor based in Los Angeles. He co-founded AnyPerk, later renamed Fond, after joining Y Combinator’s Winter 2012 batch and moving away from an unsuccessful dating-site idea. Fond expanded from employee perks into rewards and recognition and was acquired by Reward Gateway in 2023, before Reward Gateway’s acquisition by Edenred. Fukuyama founded Rice Capital in 2024 to invest in US and Japanese startups; its current website describes backing more than 200 founders.

- **Role:** Founding Partner at Rice Capital
- **Organizations:** Rice Capital, Fond (formerly AnyPerk), Y Combinator, SmartHR, Knowledge Work
- **From:** Tokyo, Japan
- **Nationality:** Japanese
- **Education:** Faculty of Law graduate, Keio University, Y Combinator
- **Known for:** Part of the first Japanese founding team accepted to Y Combinator, in Winter 2012., Built Fond into an enterprise rewards, recognition and perks business acquired by Reward Gateway in 2023., Founded Rice Capital with a $15 million first fund announced in August 2024.

## Career timeline

- **2010** — Graduated from Keio University; his studies were in law.
- **2011** — Moved to the United States and pursued a startup with Sunny Tsang.
- **2012** — Joined Y Combinator’s Winter batch; settled on employee perks on February 1 and launched AnyPerk on March 1, according to his interviews.
- **2015** — AnyPerk announced a rewards beta and appeared in Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies coverage.
- **2017** — AnyPerk rebranded as Fond on April 4 and expanded its recognition and engagement tools.
- **2023** — Reward Gateway acquired Fond; Edenred subsequently acquired Reward Gateway.
- **2024** — Established Rice Capital in July; announced a $15 million first fund in August.
- **2026** — Continued investing through Rice Capital, including in Sotas, and appeared on XTech Ventures’ October 1 podcast discussing Y Combinator’s summer batch.

## Achievements

- Part of the first Japanese founding team accepted to Y Combinator, in Winter 2012.
- Built Fond into an enterprise rewards, recognition and perks business acquired by Reward Gateway in 2023.
- Founded Rice Capital with a $15 million first fund announced in August 2024.
- Rice Capital’s current website describes backing more than 200 founders in the US and Japan.
- Featured in Forbes’ 2017 30 Under 30 Asia All Star Alumni coverage.

## Latest updates

- **2026-10** — Appeared on XTech Ventures’ October 1 episode discussing Y Combinator’s Summer 2026 batch, deep technology and AI assistants; its biography reports 200 portfolio companies.
- **2026-09** — Sotas announced Rice Capital funding on September 4; a September 30 interview explored Fukuyama’s investment decision and approach to supporting founders.

## Links

- Website: https://ricecapital.vc/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tarof
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/taro_f
- Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/taro.bsky.social
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tarof

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/taro-fukuyama
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-26