Weekly News Digest #22
# of announced deals
11
announced deals’ size
$59.6m
# of closed deals
11
Hi all,
Last week, there were no transactions of significant magnitude to be highlighted in our digest. However, you can review the noteworthy deals from the previous week in the ‘Notable Transactions’ section below.
We thank MGVC and Xsolla for supporting this digest.
| NOTABLE TRANSACTIONS |
VENTURE FINANCING
US-based web3 UGC platform Hypersonic Laboratories has raised $7m in a funding round led by Play Ventures, with participation from AppWorks, KB Investment, and others. The funds will fuel the preparation of the multiplayer role-playing sandbox UGC platform Helix for a closed alpha launch later this year. The company has raised a total of $10.5m across two rounds.
US-based project funding platform Braavo Capital has raised $5m in a Series B funding round with participation from Series A lead investors Headline and other investors. Additionally, the company has raised $30m in debt funding from Upper90. The funds will fuel Braavo Growth Ventures, an initiative that drives innovation in the consumer subscription market.
Cyprus-based game developers Weappy and VEA Games, along with US-based Game Garden, have raised $5m from Gem Capital. All three studios will use the funds to fuel the development of their new titles. Weappy will develop and self-publish a PC & console game called Hollywood Animal, VEA Games will develop an unannounced PC & console platformer, and Game Garden will launch a mobile title called Florescence.
South Korea-based web3 games developer Supervillain Labs has raised $4.5m in a Seed funding round co-led by Intella X and Aptos Labs, with participation from Spartan Capital, Crit Ventures, Presto Ventures, Planetarium Labs, and other investors. The funds will support the global launch of the web3 title Supervillain: Idle RPG.
US-based web3 platform Play AI has raised $4.3m in a Seed funding round from various investors. The funds will fuel the development of middleware solutions for integrating AI models and agents in web3 games. The company’s estimated valuation after this round equals $70m. The company describes its platform as a modular chain for gaming AI, providing developers with gaming data and tools while rewarding users for their gameplay data contributions.
Cyprus-based mobile games developer Juicy Button Games has raised $3m in a Seed funding round led by The Games Fund. The funds will fuel the development of the debut title in the 4x strategy genre. Founded by the creators of Total Battle, Pixel Gun 3D, and Mighty Party, the studio wants to compete with Chinese market leaders of the 4x genre.
Canada-based web3 gaming platform NexGami has raised $2.5m in a Seed funding round led by Metalpha, with participation from KuCoin Ventures, HTX Ventures, Gate Labs, Ledger Capital, Tide Group, OIG, XT.com, Lbank, Kekkai, IBC Group, and other investors. The funds will fuel the development of the web3 platform, which will host competitive events across different gaming titles. During the previous pre-Seed funding round, the company raised $2m with a post-money valuation of $20m.
Turkey-based mobile educational games developer Piagmo Tech has raised an undisclosed sum in a pre-Seed funding round from Virgosol at a ~$300k (TLR 10m) valuation. The funds will fuel the games’ scaling and personalization of educational technologies.
Singapore-based web3 gaming platform CARV has raised an undisclosed sum in a strategic investment from Animoca Brands (ASX : AB1). Additionally, Animoca Brands will operate CARV’s technological web3 developments to support decentralizing the company’s data layer.
PUBLIC OFFERINGS
UAE-based investment firm Compassare Holdings has acquired 8.28% of the voting rights, or 66.7 million newly issued shares, in UK-based esports organization Guild Esports (LON: GILD) for ~$319k (£250k). This deal makes Compassare Holdings the third-largest shareholder of the company. The transaction finalizes a convertible loan note agreement with Compassare Holdings, with an 8% interest rate for a one-year term. The company has repeatedly cited the importance of the MENA region to the development of UK esports, suggesting that the deal may be part of its broader strategy.
FUNDRAISING
US-based game developer Gamefam has launched a $5m gaming fund. The fund will focus on UGC creators working on gaming platforms such as Roblox and Fortnite. It also plans to allocate 25% of the total sum specifically to underrepresented creators. The fund’s targets will receive between $10k and $100k and various consulting services.
OTHER
The Croatian government has provided ~$28m (€26m) as the first round of financing for a gaming and esports campus in Croatia. A ~$54m (€50m) gaming campus in Novska, Croatia, aims to bolster the video game industry locally and regionally by attracting over 50 Croatian gaming startups.
