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Esports platform MPL valued at $2.3 billion in its Series E financing
Mobile Premier League, Asia’s largest esports and skill gaming platform, announced that it raised its Series E round of financing led by Legatum Capital at a pre-money valuation of $2.3 billion.
MPL recently began operations in the United States of America and completed two years of operations in Indonesia, making it the only mobile gaming platform from India with a growing international presence. MPL currently has over 85 million registered users globally. It is endorsed by Indian Cricket Captain Virat Kohli and earlier this year signed Indonesian actor and internet celebrity Baim Wong as its brand ambassador in Indonesia.
The latest fundraise was led by Legatum Capital. Existing investors including Sequoia, SIG, RTP Global, Go-Ventures, Moore Strategic Ventures, Play Ventures, Base Partners, Telstra Ventures, and Founders Circle Capital also participated in the round.
“This investment is a recognition of the potential of the Indian gaming and esports industry and an endorsement of the capability of MPL to expand globally. MPL’s proven success in India and Indonesia encouraged us to launch in the US, one of the world’s largest gaming markets. Our US operations are off to a promising start and we’re thus fulfilling our resolve to make our platform the esports and gaming hub of the world” said Sai Srinivas, Co-founder and CEO, MPL.
MPL will use the fresh infusion of capital to finance its global expansion, invest in its home-grown technology, and drive continued growth in the Indian market.
“We are seeing strong traction globally as a function of our direct to consumer approach. Our platform strategy allows us to pool user liquidity, enable synchronous competitions, aggregate gaming content, and drive superior matchmaking, which all together enable best-in-class user retention and monetisation. We’re thrilled to partner with Legatum Capital as we continue to work on our vision of building the world’s largest esports platform,” said Joe Wadakethalakal, SVP, Corporate Development, MPL
Legatum CEO and new MPL board member, Mark Stoleson, said “Legatum is delighted to have led this latest round of funding for MPL as it continues its incredible growth trajectory and becomes the world’s leading esports and skill gaming platform. It is an honour to support Sai, Shubh, and the outstanding team at MPL and to join the other world-class investors in building a company that provides a top-class gaming experience for users, unmatched distribution for developers and a commitment to building a company with the best global talent and a winning culture. Legatum’s investment in MPL is another example of our strategy to invest in world class teams building world-scale companies that define categories and serve customers with integrity.”
“We at Play Ventures have been very impressed by the speed that the MPL team is progressing with on their mission to bring competitive gaming worldwide. We have no doubt that their entry in the US market will further strengthen their position as the number one competitive gaming platform in the world,” said Henrik Suuronen, Founding Partner, Play Ventures.
Galina Chifina, Partner, RTP Global, said, “It was clear to us from the beginning that MPL had the potential to become one of India’s major start-up success stories. Sai, Shubh and the team have taken the platform to new heights in 2021 and this next round of funding has secured MPL’s well-deserved status as a unicorn. We are delighted to be supporting the company with its next stage of growth. Congratulations to the team.”
Earlier this year, MPL acquired esports firm Gaming Monk to develop a full suite of esports and live streaming capabilities. In early September the platform announced a partnership with the Play Magnus Group, founded by Chess superstar Magnus Carlsen. With this partnership, MPL will host the official Indian Circuit for players to qualify for the Meltwater Champion Chess Tour. This is the first ever regional expansion for the Champion Chess Tour.
MPL, headquartered in Bengaluru, also has offices in Pune, New Delhi, Jakarta, Singapore, and New York.
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