Crypto giant FTX in talks about investing in MPL 

Mobile Premier League (MPL), a Bengaluru-based sports fantasy startup, is expected to raise funds from a number of investors, including Bahamas-based crypto exchange FTX, to help increase Web3 adoption and proliferation in the Indian gaming market. 

The investment would help the unicorn expand its offerings and enter new categories such as Web3, which represents the future of the internet, where users operate in a decentralized manner rather than relying on large commercial enterprises or centralized government organizations, with a focus on community, rather than relying on major commercial enterprises or centralized government organizations. 

It’s worth noting that FTX Gaming, a subsidiary of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, formed a cooperation with Yield Guild Games’ Indian arm, IndiGG, last month, indicating that Web3 adoption in India has a lot of potential. 

Meanwhile, according to an Inc42 report from March 2022, MPL had 21x higher sales in FY21. In the fiscal year that ended on March 31, 2021, it generated revenue of INR 378.5 crore from sales. 

MPL has approximately 60 mobile games under its belt, including sports, card games, and fantasy games. It has told several existing and new potential investors in recent weeks that it wants to launch play-to-earn and NFT-based games later this year, according to the people, who asked to remain anonymous because the discussions are still continuing and they are not permitted to speak to the press. 

In its solo financials, which are published on RoC filings, the startup stated that it made revenue of INR 17.6 crore from sales in FY20. Its overall revenue in FY21 was estimated to be INR 499.5 crore, up 2,130 percent from the INR 22.4 crore it earned in FY20. 

MPL, which already has Sequoia Capital India and RTP Global as investors, has been aiming to raise the new funding as a follow-on to its Series E deal, which is valued at $2.5 billion, according to one of the sources. 

GameDuell was bought by the gaming startup in February 2022 as part of its aim to expand operations across key worldwide regions. After having a foothold in North America and Asia, MPL has expanded its footprint to Europe with this deal. 

In September 2021, the esports gaming startup joined the unicorn club. It raised roughly $150 million in a Series E round from Legatum Capital, Accrete Capital, and Gaingels LLC, for a pre-money valuation of $2.3 billion. 

Published By : Revathy G Sanal

Edited By : Subbuthai Padma