SaaS (software-as-a-service)-based gaming tournament discovery platform EsportsXo, owned and operated by TechnoXo Pvt Ltd, has raised $1.1 million in its Seed funding round led by We Founder Circle, a founder-driven angel network, the company said in a statement on Monday.
The round also saw participation from other investors including Wami Capital, SOSV, Mumbai Angels Network, SucSEED Indovation Fund, The Gaming Lounge and FAAD Network Pvt Ltd. EsportsXo plans to invest 40% of the funds into tech and non-tech employees, while the rest will used for marketing and operations, the statement said.
The Bengaluru-based startup, enables game publishers and brands to launch custom tournaments for users. The company said that it plans to build an esports metaverse for fans and players. EsportsXo has over 150,000 users on its platform and is witnessing a 20% month-on-month growth. The platform--XO--claims to have organised more than 250 tournaments across eight games last year. More than two million people participated in these games, the statement said.
Founded in 2020 by Vikas Goel, Utsav Umang and Rohit Raj, the company had raised $200,000 from the three founders in their personal capacity, prior to the current Seed round. The company aims to build a community of console, PC and mobile gamers across the world, who can come on a single platform. EsportsXO also plans to build a platform to offer other services, including e-learning, merchandising, NFTs (non-fungible tokens), content and social networking, the statement said.
“Esports in India is at the same stage where e-commerce was 15 years ago, there are a lot of opportunities for everyone. The market in India and the rest of the APAC (Asia-Pacific) region is very huge which gives us enough room for creativity and growth,” said Goel.
We Founder Circle, meanwhile, has invested $12 million in 30 startups so far across 10 sectors, the angel network had recently said. The founder-driven network, earlier this month, had invested in an electric vehicle startup Oben EV. We Founder Circle, had also invested in a pets’ supplies brand Zoviane Pets. EsportsXo’s investment adds another sector to the angel network’s portfolio.
“(The) SaaS industry has been witnessing tremendous growth in India, given the availability of the quality resources, professionals, and a wide user base. EsportsXO has cut a considerable slice in the market in a very short span of time,” said Bhawna Bhatnagar, Co-founder, We Founder Circle.