Today blockchain games company Animoca Brands announced a $358 million funding, valuing the company at more than $5 billion. The round was led by Libert City Ventures, with participation from a large number of investors, including Soros Fund Management.
It’s not Soros Fund’s first blockchain funding. Other investments have included NYDIG, the Bitcoin investment manager and Lukka, the crypto data, accounting and tax reporting firm.
Last year Animoca had three rounds of funding totaling $216 million, including from Ubisoft, Samsung and RIT Capital Partners (Rothschild Investment Trust). The last round in October valued the firm at $2,2 billion. Additionally, Animoca’s subsidiary, The Sandbox, raised another $93 million.
During that time, Animoca has been involved in a dizzying number of deals, including subsidiaries that develop games and investments in other players in the blockchain, gaming, and metaverse sectors. Rarely a day goes by without an Animoca deal announcement, and it’s made 150 investments so far. One high profile example is its plan to develop a play-to-earn game in conjunction with Bored Ape Yacht Club.
Two of its biggest financial successes relate to tokens, SAND for The Sandbox, and REVV for its motor racing title. It also has licensed NFT games F1 Delta Time and MotoGP. And Animoca was an early investor in the biggest play-to-earn game so far, Axie Infinity.
One games company has actually raised more money. Forte, which provides blockchain tools for game developers, raised a massive $725 million in November. And naturally, Animoca participated. Other investments include an early stake in the largest NFT marketplace OpenSea and Dapper Labs, the creator of NBA Top Shot and the Flow blockchain.
“We are about to experience fundamental change in multiple aspects of our digital lives, including the ways in which we enjoy games and purchase and utilize virtual goods,” said a spokesperson for Samsung Venture Investment Corporation. “Animoca Brands is the company making this decentralized future of gaming possible.”
Additional investors that participated in today’s funding include 10T Holdings, C Ventures, Delta Fund, Gemini Frontier Fund, Gobi Partners Greater Bay Area, Kingsway, L2 Capital, Mirae Asset, Pacific Century Group, ParaFi Capital, Provident, Senator Investment Group, Sequoia China, Smile Group, Stable Asset Management, Wildcat Capital Management, Winklevoss Capital, and others.
