Tennis

Naomi Osaka

Osaka invests mostly in wellness, food and media brands she personally uses, typically pairing an equity stake with a paid ambassador role. She co-founded the media company Hana Kuma with LeBron James and Maverick Carter's SpringHill Co.

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Hana Kuma co-founder

$11.2M (2021)Kinlo seed round

$1.17B (2021 Series D)Modern Health valuation

$700M (2020)Hyperice valuation at investment

Youngest investor and first athlete ambassador (2021)Sweetgreen

$5M (2022)Hana Kuma raise

Equity ambassador at ~$32B (2022); firm later collapsedFTX

Watch

Naomi Osaka in her own words

Naomi Osaka on Investing in Pickleball & Soccer · via Bloomberg Television

The thesis

How Naomi Osaka invests

Osaka has been unusually deliberate about taking equity rather than cash. Since around 2020 she has built a portfolio spanning wellness, food, media and women's sports, founding skincare brand Kinlo and media company Hana Kuma while backing Sweetgreen, Hyperice, Modern Health and an NWSL team. She has said investing is the part of business she finds most engaging and where she is most hands-on with founders. Not every bet worked: her equity deal with crypto exchange FTX collapsed and drew a class-action suit.

The most interesting aspect of the business for me is investing. I've learned a ton in the last 18 months from Alex Cohen and Stu and that's probably the area where I'm most engaged.

Boardroom, 2023 ↗

My investment in the North Carolina Courage is far beyond just being a team owner, it's an investment in amazing women who are role models and leaders in their fields and inspirations to all young female athletes.

Sports Illustrated, 2021 ↗

The portfolio

What Naomi Osaka has backed

8 documented positions — each sourced to named reporting.

Kinlo

Skincare brand for melanated skin, built with A-Frame Brands

When: Founded September 2021; raised an $11.2M seed round with backers including Colin Kaepernick
Why: Addressed the sun-care needs of darker skin tones, a gap she framed as a public-health issue
Status: Operating; Osaka is founder

PR Newswire, 2021 ↗Essence, 2022 ↗

Hana Kuma

Media and production company

When: Co-founded June 2022 with LeBron James and Maverick Carter's SpringHill; raised $5M
Why: To tell athlete- and culture-driven stories and control her own media
Status: Debut short documentary MINK! earned a News and Documentary Emmy nomination

ESPN, 2022 ↗CNBC, 2022 ↗

North Carolina Courage (NWSL)

Women's professional soccer team

When: Became a minority owner in January 2021
Why: Called it an investment in women as role models and leaders, beyond just team ownership
Status: Ongoing ownership stake

Sports Illustrated, 2021 ↗CNN, 2021 ↗

Major League Pickleball (Miami team)

Professional pickleball franchise

When: Joined the Miami ownership group in 2022 alongside Patrick Mahomes and Nick Kyrgios
Why: An early bet on one of the fastest-growing participation sports
Status: Team competes in the league; expansion slots were priced around $3M at the time

Forbes, 2022 ↗Sportico, 2022 ↗

Sweetgreen

Fast-casual salad chain

When: Invested in 2021, becoming its youngest investor and first athlete ambassador
Why: Aligned with her interest in health and food; she also helped design a menu item
Status: Went public in November 2021

Restaurant Business, 2021 ↗Black Enterprise, 2021 ↗

Hyperice

Sports-recovery technology company

When: Joined its athlete-investor round in October 2020 (company valued at $700M)
Why: A recovery-tech user who took equity in a product she relies on for training
Status: Private; Osaka remains an athlete investor and partner

CNBC, 2020 ↗SportsPro, 2020 ↗

Modern Health

Workplace mental-health platform

When: Invested in 2022 and became a board observer; also serves as its Chief Community Health Advocate
Why: Tied to her public advocacy on mental health
Status: Reached a $1.17B valuation in its 2021 Series D

PR Newswire, 2022 ↗Modern Health, 2021 ↗

FTX

Cryptocurrency exchange

When: Became a global ambassador with an equity stake in March 2022, when FTX was valued around $32B
Why: A high-profile crypto endorsement paid partly in equity and crypto
Status: FTX collapsed into bankruptcy in November 2022; Osaka was named among celebrities in an $11B investor class action

SportsPro, 2022 ↗Tennis.com, 2022 ↗

Photo: AndrewHenkelman — Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

What the record doesn't say

Read this with the gaps in mind.

The size of her stakes in Sweetgreen, Hyperice and Hana Kuma is not disclosed. Several of her deals bundle equity with paid ambassador roles, so the split between investment and endorsement is not broken out.

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Frequently asked questions

What has Naomi Osaka invested in?

Naomi Osaka has backed Kinlo, Hana Kuma, North Carolina Courage (NWSL), Major League Pickleball (Miami team), and 4 more. Each one is listed on this page with what the company does and a link to named reporting.

How much has Naomi Osaka invested?

Cheque sizes are almost never disclosed, and Naomi Osaka's are mostly private. Where a round size, stake or valuation has been reported we cite the source; otherwise we flag it as undisclosed rather than guess.

How does Naomi Osaka invest?

Osaka has been unusually deliberate about taking equity rather than cash.