Bits of Signum 6.14.2020
Happy Sunday! As usual, all relevant M&A announcements within our purview of digital assets and all other emerging tech in gaming and entertainment are below.
Last night, the Future of Gaming 2020 aired on Twitch and other channels for an “exclusive look at some of the most exciting titles on the horizon, with new trailers, gameplay demos, and interviews with developers.” The entire show was 2+ hours and can be viewed here. One feature I wanted to highlight is Blankos Block Party by Mythical Games. I have been lucky to work with this incredible team, notably CEO John Linden, CCO Jamie Jackson, Rudy Koch, Pete Hawley, Andre Johnson, Jeff Poffenbarger and many others, believe it or not, who have a very long history of success as studio heads and creators of several big games e.g., Call of Duty, Guitar Hero, World of Warcraft, Skylanders and others. This is an important game to watch because it is the first AAA video game which uses blockchain to enable many parties to take part in digital economies. The highway of buying and selling in-game assets has been moving for decades (e.g., selling WoW gold on eBay) but the ability for multiple parties to make money on every transaction and to actually track ownership has not. (Full disclosure: I'm on the Advisory Board of Mythical Games!).
I also wanted to highlight Roundhill’s new Sports Betting ETF (BETZ) which launched 6/4 - Nik asked Will Hershey to discuss why BETZ has started off so much stronger, given they both focus on “hot” growth entertainment verticals that get plenty of publicity and discussion, especially during COVID-19. From Roundhill’s perspective, the prime factor is that Sports Betting has more publicly listed options, making BETZ a better derivative of the Sports Betting industry. Also, sports betting may have broader understanding and appeal. Co-Founder Tim Maloney was quoted on the rise of the Robinhood trader, due for commission free trading. See components of each fund below. Note: the firm is backed by Bitkraft, who invested in Roundhill’s Seed round in May, 2019.
Thanks and have a great Sunday!
Angie
Angela Dalton | LinkedIn | Twitter | Email
Digital Assets
Max Fiege | LinkedIn | Twitter | Email
HEADLINES
Microsoft launches beta release of Bitcoin-based decentralized identity solution
ION provides a universal log-in solution that any company can integrate
Microsoft partnering with Casa, BitPay, and Gemini initially in this pilot
Libra lands Credit Suisse Global Head of Financial Crime Compliance as CCO
Sterling Daines has worked at the Department of Justice and FinCEN
Libra is currently seeking a payment system license from FINMA
ETC Group launches Bitcoin ETP, BTCE, on German Xetra exchange.
BTC will be custodied by BitGo and redeemable on a 1000:1 basis
ETPs are debt securities and thus come with counterparty risk
Liechtenstein-based Bank Frick has begun accepting stablecoin deposits
USD Coin transactions settle, on average, in 6 minutes and at minimal cost
USDC market cap has grown 50% YTD with $750M in circulation
Human Rights Fund launches development fund for Bitcoin privacy projects
Meant to augment viability of Bitcoin for activists, journalists, and dissidents
First 501(c)(3) tax-deductible charity focused on Bitcoin development
Disruptive Entertainment
Nik Vantzos | LinkedIn | Email
HEADLINES
Sony’s Playstation 5 was unveiled today and it looks beautiful
We'll see two versions of the PS5, including a “digital only” version
Numerous developers made announcements, including GTA Online going standalone and free-to-play. The initial slate also includes Gran Turismo 7, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, Hitman 3, NBA 2K21, Resident Evil: Village, among others
Analysts already expect the PS5 to “far outsell” Xbox Series X
Confirmed “Holiday 2020” release; will support Epic’s Unreal Engine 5, PSVR
Large-cap Asian gaming company Nexon to invest $1.5B in other global entertainment companies
In search of companies that “share Nexon’s vision for creating and sustaining strong IP across multiple markets, in multiple formats for long periods of time”.
This reflects Nexon’s strong stock performance YTD, high cash on hand (~$5 billion), and continued low interest rates
It will be interesting to see if Nexon stays true to its stated inclination towards “listed” companies or if it moves into earlier stage private companies
About Nexon:
South Korean origins (founded in Seoul in 1994), with Headquarters in Tokyo, Japan since moving there in 2005
~$20B market cap with stock up 68% YTD, reaching all-time highs
Publishes PC and Mobile online games, focusing on MMORPG’s (“massively multiplayer online role playing games”), including MapleStory, Dungeon Fighter, Sudden Attack, and KartRider.
M&A and Raises
Digital Assets
Sun Exchange raises $4M Series A led by ARCH Emerging Markets Partners
Upvest raises €900K from the European Regional Development Fund
Disruptive Entertainment
Sources claim AT&T is seeking a buyer for Warner Games, which it acquired through its 2018 acquisition of Time Warner; it could go for ~$4B; Warner Games owns titles including Mortal Kombat and Harry Potter: Wizards Unite; Take Two, EA, and Activision Blizzard have expressed early interest
Boom.tv, an esports livestreaming platform, raised $10M in Series A funding, led by Bitkraft and joined by Crest Capital, PTW, Everblue, ImaginationVC, MTG Media Group, WTI, and H. Barton AM
Whatifi, an LA interactive movie maker, raised $10M in funding, led by Andreessen Horowitz; joined by Matrix Partners, and a list of successful founders/angels from Netflix, Supercell, Paypal, Zynga, Bebo, Transferwise, Betfair, Tesla, and Lyft
Play One Up (Cleveland e-gaming app allowing users to compete for cash) raised $3.1M in seed funding; led by Three Curve Capital
Virtual concert maker Wave closed its $30M Series B raise, led by Maveron, with participation from Griffin Gaming Partners, NTT Docomo Ventures, Avex, Superfly Ventures, Convivialite Ventures, and Raised in Space. Various angels also participated, including Twitch Co-Founder, Kevin Lin. Wave could be a key piece of the continuing construction of The Metaverse
Playable Worlds (Sandbox MMO) raises $10M Series A, led by Galaxy Interactive, with participation from Bitkraft; the company is starting with a Sandbox MMO game, but has aspirations to enter the Metaverse discussion
Luckbox (Esports betting) closed a $3.8M funding round, and prepares to list on the TSX Venture Exchange this summer. The company has seen solid metrics upticks during corona
Video game engine Unity is expected to IPO this year with Goldman leading the process; latest valuation was $6.28B in 2019; investors include Sequoia, London Venture Partners, Thrive Capital, DFJ Growth, Silver Lake, and CPPIB, among others
Bain Capital and CVC Partners are reportedly bidding for a 25% stake in Italian Soccer league Serie A, with Bain Capital most recently bidding $3.4 billion
Signum Growth Capital Team
Angela Dalton | Founder and CEO | angela@signumgrowthcapital.com
Max Fiege | Director, Digital Assets | max@signumgrowthcapital.com
Nik Vantzos | Director, Disruptive Entertainment | nik@signumgrowthcapital.com