Animoca Brands Corporation Ltd has gained direct financial support from some of the biggest players in the video game market through its successful US$65 million (A$87.7 million) capital raise, conducted at a pre-money valuation of US$2.2 billion.
Investors in the round included Ubisoft Entertainment – one of the most famous and prolific game developers and publishers in the world – Liberty City Ventures, Sequoia China, Dragonfly Capital, Com2uS, Kingsway Capital, 10T Holdings, Token Bay Capital, Smile Group, Tess Ventures, MSA Capital, Octava fund, Adit Ventures, Summer Capital, Sigitech Holdings, Black Anthem Ltd, Mirana Corp and Justin Sun.
Ubisoft’s vote of confidence is of particular note considering the company’s position as 16th largest video game company in the world, with US$1.773 billion in revenue last year and more than 200 game titles published.
The new capital will be used to fund strategic investments and acquisitions, product development and licences for popular intellectual properties.
“That future is already here”
Animoca Brands has focused its efforts in the emerging NFT, block-chain sector of the video game industry, bringing digital property rights and transferable assets to consumers.
Earlier in the year, Animoca Brands raised US$138.88 million on the strength of its plan to deliver digital property rights via NFTs.
“In 2018 we laid out a strategy based on our assessment that in the future digital property rights would revolutionize industries by expanding financial inclusion, and that this significant change would start with NFT adoption in games. That future is already here,” co-founder and executive chairman Yat Siu said.
“With the backing of our new strategic investors, Animoca Brands will continue to advance blockchain in gaming - and beyond - to introduce billions of gamers and Internet users to true digital ownership.”
The use of blockchain and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) enable the true digital ownership of users’ virtual assets and data, and offer various play-to-earn capabilities, asset interoperability, and DeFi/GameFi (cryptocurrency) opportunities.
Pioneering new sector of the industry
The global video game market is estimated to generate US$175.8 billion in 2021, anticipated to reach US$398.15 billion by 2027 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.9%.
In the last few years, Animoca Brands has established itself as one of the world’s leading technology groups in blockchain and gaming by spearheading and innovating decentralised in-game rewards and monetisation in video games.
An MSA Capital spokesperson commented: “MSA has both invested in and tracked the evolution of social and gaming apps globally. We believe crypto not only provides novel in-game monetization but also precipitates new systems for digital rights, begetting NFTs and metaverses.
“Animoca Brands has been a pioneer in this burgeoning space and we believe this team has the right skillset and tools to usher in this new digital world.”
“A digital renaissance”
Animoca Brands recently financially backed subsidiary MADworld as it prepares to launch its NFT Origination Platform, designed to assist creators in developing, digitising and distributing all forms of creative expression with the support of NFTs to promote and monetise content.
Read: Animoca Brands backs MADworld to defend NFT artist rights with Origination Platform
“I believe that the gaming, art and music industries are entering a digital renaissance period uniquely enabled by blockchain. Yat and his team have demonstrated vision and foresight from the beginning, and we are therefore excited to partner with Animoca Brands to build some of the largest on-ramps of the virtual world.” Dragonfly Capital partner, Mia Deng said.
Animoca Brands and subsidiaries offer a broad portfolio of game products, both centralized and decentralized, branded and original, with coverage across most primary platforms including mobile devices, game consoles, PC, web and blockchain. Products include games ranging from hyper-casual to hardcore, as well as collectibles, utility tokens, esports titles and more.
“Acceleration of a new era”
“I believe this transaction marks the acceleration of a new era! Animoca Brands is driving the practical applications of advanced blockchain technology and a new way of life,” Summer Capital founder and chairman, Joseph Chee said.
“We are excited to be a part of Animoca Brands’ journey and future successes. Summer Capital will continue to invest in the blockchain space with strong conviction.”
Some of the company’s major blockchain game projects include REVV Racing, F1® Delta Time, MotoGP™ Ignition and Formula E: High Voltage in the REVV token ecosystem, as well as The Sandbox and its associated utility token SAND, and the GAMEE, TOWER and LMT tokens.
Last month Animoca Brands announced Phantom Galaxies, an open world space opera RPG to be released in 2022.
Read: Animoca Brands reveals Phantom Galaxies, an open world space opera RPG
Token Bay Capital founder and general partner, Lucy Gazmararian said: “Animoca Brands is at the forefront of the blockchain gaming revolution, pioneering the next generation gaming experience where gaming, digital property rights and digital economies intersect to create new ecosystems which empower individual users like never before.”
Details of capital raise
The company has executed subscription agreements with various institutional and professional investors to raise a total of US$65 million (approximately A$87.7 million) at a subscription price of A$2.00 per share, for a total of 43,850,317 new shares.
Animoca Brands’ corporate advisor Everest Ventures Group advised on and assisted with this capital raise.