Weekly News Digest #23

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Liftoff Mobile: From Postponed IPO to $503m Raise and 24% First-Day Pop

US-based mobile app marketing company Liftoff Mobile (NASDAQ: LFTO) has listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market, raising ~$503m through the sale of 21.85 million shares at $23 each, including 2.85 million shares from the full exercise of the underwriters’ overallotment option. The offer price of $23 per share came in above the targeted range of $20 to $22 apiece. The offering values the company at a market capitalization of $3.89B and a pro-forma Enterprise Value of $5.0B, incorporating IPO proceeds applied to debt repayment. Goldman Sachs, Jefferies, and Morgan Stanley served as joint lead book-running managers, with Barclays, RBC Capital Markets, UBS Investment Bank, Wells Fargo Securities, William Blair, Deutsche Bank Securities, PJT Partners, Wolfe | Nomura Alliance, BTIG, Needham & Company, and Raymond James acting as joint book-running managers. General Atlantic allocated approximately 1.3 million common shares. Liftoff intends to use approximately $413.8m of the proceeds to repay outstanding debt under its new term loan facility, which matures in 2032, with the remainder directed to general corporate purposes.The strength of the debut is particularly notable, given that this was Liftoff’s second attempt to go public in 2026. In Feb’26, the company postponed an earlier IPO targeting $26 to $30 per share and up to $762m in gross proceeds. The decision came as the sector entered a sharp selloff that would see the S&P 500 Software Industry index fall approximately 25% from its early January peak of ~8,008 points to ~6,027 points. Investor concerns over AI’s disruptive impact on software companies were among the factors at play, with Liftoff’s peers AppLovin (NASDAQ: APP) and Unity (NYSE: U) falling ~45% and ~64%, respectively, from their January peaks to their February lows. The company refiled confidentially and returned to market more than three and a half months later, by which point the index had recovered approximately 24% to ~7,492 points. The improved market backdrop was reflected in the outcome: Liftoff shares were priced at $23 and surged 23.7% on the first day of trading, closing at $28.45 on Jun 4, 2026.

Blackstone (NYSE: BX) has been Liftoff’s controlling shareholder since acquiring a majority stake in Dec’20 for $400m, retaining approximately 50.4% of voting power following the IPO and qualifying Liftoff as a “controlled company” under NASDAQ governance rules. The Oct’21 merger with Vungle significantly expanded the platform, creating one of the largest independent mobile app growth platforms that covers user acquisition, engagement, monetization, and analytics. Over the last few years, the company delivered strong operational performance, driven by the rollout of Cortex, an internally developed neural network-based AI prediction model that began in Q4’23, replacing legacy linear regression and processing approximately 21x as much data as its predecessor. The transition drove ten consecutive quarters of Core Advertising revenue growth, averaging over 8% per quarter. On the path to the listing, Liftoff completed a May’25 minority stake sale to General Atlantic at a $4.3B enterprise value, providing an early valuation reference point and representing a $700m step-up to the current IPO EV of $5.0B.As the chart above illustrates, the company’s revenue and EBITDA grew at ~20% and ~22% CAGRs, respectively, over 2023–2025, with the acceleration particularly visible from 2024 onward. The momentum has continued into 2026: in Q1’26, Liftoff reported 37% YoY revenue growth and a 53% EBITDA margin. As of Mar 31, 2026, the platform served 878 demand-side customers, reached over 1.4 billion daily active users, and generated LTM Core Advertising Net Dollar Retention of 130%. Notably, slightly more than half of Q1’26 advertiser revenue came from verticals outside gaming, reflecting a deliberate push to diversify beyond the company’s original focus.

We will continue to monitor Liftoff’s post-IPO trajectory, Blackstone’s management of its controlling stake, and whether the Cortex flywheel continues to compound at the pace seen over the past ten quarters.

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MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS

China-based IP content and web literature platform China Literature Limited (SEHK: 0772), operating through its subsidiary Shanghai Hongwen, has acquired an additional 28.22% stake in China-based animation and game content developer Wuhan Yihua Kaitianmen Cultural Communication Co., Ltd. for ~$55.3m (RMB 400.8m), purchasing shares from seller Linzhi Lichuang. Before this transaction, China Literature held approximately 31.48%; upon completion, its ownership rose to approximately 59.70%, giving it majority control. Announced on Jun 2, 2026, via a connected transaction disclosure on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, the deal strengthens China Literature’s control of the IP value chain by adding Yihua Kaitianmen’s premium long-form animation production capabilities to its ecosystem spanning web literature, comics, animation, drama, film, games, and AI content. Founded in 2015, Yihua Kaitianmen develops animation and game content, and is best known for its sci-fi animation IP Ling Cage, whose first season accumulated over 10 billion cumulative views across platforms.

France-based games publisher Atari (EURONEXT: ALATA) has announced the acquisition of Australia-based mobile games developer Hipster Whale for an initial consideration of $29.3m, comprising $26m in cash and $3.3m in newly issued Atari shares, with performance-based earnouts of up to $10m over three years, bringing total potential consideration to $39.3m. The $26m cash component will be financed via a $13.1m bank loan and a $14m related-party loan from IRATA, Atari’s reference shareholder. The share component will result in the issuance of 117,813 new Atari shares at €24 per share, giving Hipster Whale’s shareholders approximately 4% of Atari’s post-transaction share capital, subject to a 1-year lock-up. Founded in 2014 by Matt Hall and Andrew Sum, Hipster Whale is known for Crossy Road, which has accumulated over 340 million lifetime downloads, and a portfolio that includes Pac-Man 256, Disney Crossy Road, Piffle, and the Apple Arcade title Crossy Road Castle. For the twelve months ended Jan 31, 2026, Hipster Whale generated $8.28m in revenue and $4.63m in EBITDA, implying acquisition multiples of approximately 4.8x EV/Revenue and 8.5x EV/EBITDA based on a total consideration. Co-founder Matt Hall will take a leadership role overseeing Atari’s mobile development following completion, while co-founder Andrew Sum’s post-closing role was not disclosed. The Melbourne studio joins Digital Eclipse and Nightdive Studios in Atari’s portfolio.

Sweden-based multi-studio games company Stillfront Group (STO: SF) has announced two transactions with an aggregate consideration of ~$29m (SEK 268m), as part of its ongoing strategic review. Through its subsidiary Moonfrog Labs, Stillfront agreed an upfront cash settlement with India-based mobile games developer Gameberry Labs for $26.5m (SEK 245m), replacing Gameberry’s remaining payment obligations through 2030 under an existing settlement related to Ludo Games and ancillary titles. Separately, Stillfront divested Germany-based OFM Studios GmbH to its founder via a management buyout for ~$2.4m (€2.1m), which closed in May’26. OFM Studios operates the web-based football management game OnlineFussballManager. The combined transactions are expected to reduce Stillfront’s net revenue by ~$11.7m (SEK 110m) and adjusted EBITDAC by ~$9.6m (SEK 90m) over the next twelve months.

US-based game creation and multiplayer platform Roblox (NYSE: RBLX) has acquired Morpheus AI, a generative video world model lab, for an undisclosed sum. Founded in Aug’25 by Xun Huang, who previously worked at Adobe and NVIDIA, Morpheus AI developed generative world-model technology that Roblox will integrate into its new Roblox Reality architecture to enable photorealistic multiplayer gaming environments. As part of the deal, the Morpheus AI team joined Roblox, with Huang taking on a technical director role. Roblox plans to release an early version of the Roblox Reality software later in 2026.

UK-based indie games publisher Secret Mode, a portfolio company of UK-based gaming investment firm Emona Capital, has acquired the co-op platformer Chained Together from its developer Anegar Games for an undisclosed sum. Chained Together, launched on Steam in Jun’24, has generated ~$50.8m in gross revenue from 13.2 million copies sold on Steam, according to Alinea Analytics. Anegar Games is a micro-studio with a single developer. Secret Mode plans to bring new content and continued development to the title, including a new external development partner. The acquisition follows Emona Capital’s acquisition of Secret Mode from Sumo Group in Mar’25.

Hong Kong-based cinema management and entertainment company Bingo Group Holdings (SEHK: 8220) has acquired a minority stake in Suzhou Interactive Star Network Technology Co., Ltd., a China-based company, for an undisclosed sum. Suzhou Interactive Star is associated with the creative team behind the animated IP A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality. It is developing AI-driven film, interactive film-games, and television content in collaboration with the IP team. The company is set to launch Shaosong, an interactive film-game adaptation of the historical IP, in summer 2026. The deal coincides with a proposed acquisition of a 59.41% controlling stake in Bingo Group itself by investor Chiau Sing Chi for ~$2.24m (HKD 17.4m), separately announced in Feb’26.

VENTURE FINANCING

US-based AI music generation platform Suno has raised more than $400m in a Series D led by Bond Capital, at a post-money valuation of $5.4B. The round included IVP, Forerunner, Union Square Ventures, Alkeon Capital Management, Quiet Capital, and returning backers Lightspeed Venture Partners, Menlo Ventures, Matrix Partners, and Schroders Capital, as well as unnamed artists, producers, and songwriters. Founded in 2022 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Suno’s platform enables users to generate original songs from text prompts. The Series D follows a $250m Series C in Nov’25 at a $2.45B valuation, more than doubling the company’s valuation in under seven months. Suno has settled with Warner Music Group (NASDAQ: WMG) and plans to release its first music model developed in partnership with WMG in the coming months. The company continues to face class-action lawsuits backed by more than 1,800 independent artists alleging unauthorized use of their work to train AI models.

China-based AI company VAST, developer of AI-native 3D modeling platform Tripo AI, has raised nearly $200m across its A+ and A++ financing rounds, co-led by INCE Capital and China Life Yangtze River Delta Sci-Tech Fund, alongside a mix of state-backed platforms and strategic investors. VAST simultaneously announced Project Eden, a world model project targeting interactive content creation use cases, including games, film, VR, and AR. Proceeds will fund talent acquisition, core algorithm development, data accumulation, and global market expansion. Founded in 2023 by CEO Simon Song, a former co-founder of Chinese AI unicorn MiniMax, VAST previously raised $50m in a Series A co-led by Alibaba (SEHK: 9988) and Hengxu Capital.

Spain-based animation studio Anima Kitchent has raised ~$29m (€24.9m) in a late-stage investment round led by SETT (Sociedad Española para la Transformación Tecnológica), Spain’s public technology transformation vehicle, in collaboration with ReDefine Originals, the CG.Studio and creative incubator of UK-based VFX powerhouse DNEG (Prime Focus Group). The investment, approved by the Spanish Council of Ministers on Jun 2, 2026, forms part of the second phase of Spain’s Audiovisual Hub plan financed by EU NextGenerationEU funds. Founded in 2014, Anima Kitchent employs over 170 people and produces children’s animated content, including Cleo and Cuquin, distributed via HBO across Ibero-America, and Lea and Pop on YouTube. Proceeds will fund technological upgrades, shorter production timelines, and the expansion of original CG-animated productions for international distribution.

US-based AI-powered mini-app creation platform Sekai has raised $26m across a $6m Seed round and a $20m Series A. The Series A was co-led by Keith Rabois of Khosla Ventures and Nicole Quinn of Connect Ventures, with participation from 359 Capital, Parable VC, 645 Ventures, and Cherubic Ventures. The Seed was led by Navin Chaddha of Mayfield, with a16z Speedrun, A*, and MVP Ventures all returning for the Series A. Founded in 2024, Sekai’s platform enables users to generate playable, shareable mini-apps in seconds using natural language prompts, spanning games, fan tools, quizzes, memes, and niche utilities. Users have created more than 15 million mini-apps to date, with 200,000 new apps created daily. Sekai was founded by Lucky Zhang, whose prior companies include Yi+ AI, acquired by Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) in 2017; Blacktail, the largest short-video platform in Latin America, acquired by ByteDance in 2020; and Vietnam’s largest music streaming platform, which remains in operation.

US-based physical-digital gaming device company Board has raised $20m in a Series A led by Union Square Ventures, with participation from Haystack, and angel investors including Biz Stone, Elan Lee, Evan Sharp, Jesse Dorogusker, Kayvon Beykpour, Scott Belsky, and Tim Ferriss. The company’s existing backers include Lerer Hippeau, First Round Capital, SV Angel, BoxGroup, and others. USV GP Michael Mignano will join the Board of Directors. Board’s device is a 24-inch touchscreen that uses sensor technology to recognize physical game pieces, combining traditional board game mechanics with digital interactivity. The company reports tens of thousands of units deployed across homes, schools, hospitals, and restaurants in all 50 US states, with 85% of customers averaging 30 or more play sessions per month. Board was founded by Brynn Putnam, who previously sold connected fitness startup Mirror to Lululemon for $500m. Board had previously raised $15m in a round led by Lerer Hippeau. Alongside the raise, the company announced Board Studio, an AI-powered game creation platform launching later in 2026.

Hong Kong-based AI-native game community platform Aippy, developed by NADA AI and incubated by Chizi Technology, has raised $20m in a Series A led by Glowill Capital at a post-money valuation of $250m. Aippy enables users to create and interact with mini-games via natural-language prompts in a TikTok-style vertical feed. Since its Apr’25 launch, the platform has surpassed 3 million global downloads, nearly 2 million monthly active users, over 2 million user-generated games, and a daily engagement rate of approximately 50% among active users. The round, announced Jun 2, 2026, will fund talent acquisition and user growth in Europe and North America.

Ireland-based AI-powered IP protection company Midnight Labs has secured an undisclosed investment from Sony Innovation Fund. The investment will accelerate expansion across the US, Japan, and the broader Asia-Pacific region. Midnight Labs’ agentic Enforcement Engine scans more than 75 million sources, executing the equivalent of 120 hours of enforcement workflow per minute, and has removed over 2.8 billion pieces of infringing content across gaming, anime, manga, film, sports, music, and live streaming. Its creator-facing product Ceartas protects individual names, voices, and likenesses. The company is led by founder and CEO Dan Purcell and is backed by Sony Innovation Fund, Airbridge Equity Partners, Earlybird VC, and Upside VC.

Japan-based payments platform Tokenz has raised $6.5m (~JPY 1B) in a Series A led by Headline Asia, with participation from SBI Investment, New Commerce Ventures, Coral Capital, Cherubic Ventures, New Enterprise Associates (NEA), and the Shinhan-GB Future Flow Investment Limited Partnership. Tokenz provides a Merchant of Record platform enabling game developers and digital content creators to manage global transactions, tax compliance, and cross-border payments across 224 countries and regions, allowing developers to bypass high app store commission fees. The raise is positioned to capitalize on Japan’s deregulation of in-app payment rules.

Japan-based Roblox marketing and content studio WAKA has raised ~$1.6m (JPY 250m) in an early-stage round led by Spiral Capital. Founded in 2023, WAKA operates two business lines: a branded entertainment service that gamifies corporate and IP assets on Roblox for Gen-Z and Gen-Alpha audiences, and a content production arm that acquires popular Roblox games for re-production through IP collaborations. The company rebranded from EbuAction to WAKA at the same time as the round closed. Existing investor F Ventures made a follow-on contribution. New individual investors include Yoichi Wada, former President and CEO of Square Enix.

China-based pan-entertainment technology company LeJian Tech has raised an undisclosed amount in a new financing round co-led by HSG (formerly Sequoia China) and Source Code Capital. LeJian Tech develops gamified mobile apps focused on trendy toy consumption for Gen-Z audiences, including Blind Box Planet, Ichiban Prize GO, Cute Claw Machine, and the social app WILL. Announced Jun 1, 2026, proceeds will be deployed to develop AI-driven interactive experiences, expand its trendy toy supply chain, and accelerate global market entry.

China-based AI-powered IP content company PoLo Interactive Technology has raised an undisclosed sum, reportedly in the tens of millions of CNY, in an Angel round led by Xinglian Capital, with participation from Chunhua Ventures. Founded in 2025, PoLo builds AI infrastructure for IP creation and commercialization across development, operation, and derivative production. Its products include a short-drama creation assistant and an AIGC productivity platform that served over 10,000 creators in its first month, as well as a self-produced AI-animated short drama that exceeded 12 million plays at launch. PoLo holds IP partnerships across Liu Cixin’s sci-fi short story Mirror, Kaixinmahua’s comedy film Never Say Die, and LightSpeed Studios‘ mobile game PUBG Mobile. Proceeds will fund technology R&D, team expansion, and IP commercialization.

Germany-based mobile games studio Honig Games has raised an undisclosed Pre-Seed round led by Behold Ventures, with participation from IBB Ventures and angel investors. The studio is developing Bistro Bay, its debut casual mobile title. It was co-founded by Alasdair McMaster (CEO) and Renan Weber (CTO), both alumni of Berlin-based mobile games studio Wooga, known for June’s Journey. The company was originally founded as MetaBit Games in 2021 and rebranded to Honig Games GmbH in Apr’25.

Spain-based wellness mobile games developer Somni Game Studios has received ~$129k (€115k) in a government grant from ACCIÓ, the Catalan public agency for business competitiveness, funded through the Fondo de Transición Nuclear. Somni is developing Stepland, a mobile game that gamifies healthy habits, including walking, hydration, relaxation, and exercise, through a virtual pet mechanic. The grant, announced in May’26, enabled the studio to hire five employees and forms part of a broader financing package of ~$743k (€662k) that also includes a ~$162k (€141k) loan from ENISA, the Spanish public agency that provides financing to SMEs and startups.

PUBLIC OFFERINGS

Canada-based B2B gaming technology supplier Bragg Gaming Group (NASDAQ: BRAG) has completed a non-brokered private placement raising ~$1.3m through the issuance of up to 751,445 subscription receipts at $1.73 per receipt. Each receipt automatically converts into one common share and one non-transferable warrant exercisable at $2.16 per share for 36 months upon satisfaction of release conditions. The placement includes participation from insiders, CFO Robbie Bressler, COO Morten Tonnesen, and director Thomas Winter, as well as Matt Davey of Drayton International. Proceeds are intended for general corporate and working capital purposes.

Japan-based mobile games developer AltPlus (TSE: 3672) has raised ~$373k (JPY 57.85m) through the exercise of 17,500 warrants by EVO FUND. The proceeds support the company’s ongoing mobile gaming operations. Founded in 2010, AltPlus develops and operates games, including IP-based titles such as Hypnosis Mic -Alternative Rap Battle-, and also runs service development and digital entertainment staffing businesses. The 17,500 warrants exercised represent 2.5% of the total 11th series subscription rights originally issued to EVO FUND in Dec’25, with 570,500 warrants remaining unexercised. 

UA FINANCING

UK-based rewarded mobile games network Bear Hug Entertainment has received $28m in user acquisition financing from AMF Capital, a newly launched UA financing fund founded by Akin Babayigit in partnership with Makers Fund. Bear Hug, led by CEO Mark Rose, operates a portfolio of rewarded casual games built around classic genres, including mahjong, solitaire, and block puzzles, and has paid out over $500k in prizes to players to date. AMF Capital is led by Managing Director Andrew Seow, formerly a Makers Fund investor and a former director of monetization at Tripledot Studios. The fund is independent of Arcadia Gaming Partners and Makers Fund and has signed additional deals that will be announced.