Gaming startup Jetapult, which is backed by Accel, Fireside and JetSynthesys, Monday said it has acquired a “major” stake in Saudi Arabia-based mobile game developer UMX Studio for $4.5 million (about Rs 38 crore) in an all-cash deal.
The deal will help UMX expand its existing portfolio, grow its audiences across global markets, and build games in new genres, said Sharan Tulsiani, cofounder and chief executive of Jetapult told VCCircle.
He did not disclose details of the stake.
The acquisition was part of Jetapult’s strategy of ‘invest and operate’ for which it has committed $100 million over five years. UMX is Jetapult’s second acquisition after it acquired a stake in Mumbai-based Holy Cow Studio that makes lifestyle and puzzle games.
“We are targeting 3-5 of such acquisitions a year for the next couple of years (and then a slower pace),” said Tulsiani.“Depending on size and opportunity, we’ll plan to have about 10-12 gaming studios under Jetapult.”
The company is looking to acquire more game developers in the Southeast Asia, Middle East and North Africa, Eastern Europe, and Latin America regions.
“We will continue to invest in this region. UMX, as our partner, becomes a spearhead for us to expand in the region, because the gaming industry is quite a close-knit industry. This becomes a very clear central point for us to work with more gaming studios in the region,” said Tulsiani.
UMX Studio, founded by Ali Alharbi in 2014, develops mobile games, including titles such as ‘King of drifting’, ‘King of the wheel’ and ‘Shishludo’ that have garnered over 70 million downloads to date. The investment in UMX gives access to higher revenue per user (RPU) market to Jetapult.
“This significant investment from Jetapult not only marks a milestone for UMX Studio but also heralds a new era for the Saudi Arabian gaming industry,” said Ali Alharbi, Founder UMX. “ This collaboration will not only accelerate our expansion but also empower us with advanced tools and expertise.”
Jetapult, founded by Tulsiani, former head of Google Play Games India and Australia, New Zealand, and Yash Baid, previously a Principal at venture capital firm 3one4 Capital, provides long-term funding and full-stack support for global mobile game studios. The company helps studios to improve user acquisition, scale monetization efforts, and adopt cutting-edge analytics and AI tools.
“Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is a very exciting geography which is poised for exponential growth both with the twin engines of domestic consumption and global development firing together. We believe the synergy of UMX Studio with Jetapult will help catalyse more innovation in the space,” said Vinay Singh, co-founder and partner, Fireside Ventures.
“Southeast Asia is super important to us. Our next move is either Southeast Asia or Eastern Europe, both which are lined up very closely,” said Tulsiani.
“We are agnostic in terms of where the users are (geographically), except that we look for higher RPU users. As we build better quality games, the outcome would be to go after higher in-app purchase consumers, and not have a super heavy focus on ad-revenue,” he said.