WinZO Raises $65 Mn In Series C Round The startup's mission is to create a culturally relevant mobile games platform with broad-based adoption
By Prabhjeet Bhatla •
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.
Gaming and entertainment platform WinZO, on Friday, announced to have raised $65 million in a Series C funding round, led by California-based Griffin Gaming Partners, taking the total tally of capital raised by the Company to $90 million. Griffin is making its first-ever investment in India in WinZO.
This financing follows only eight months after the company raised its Series B from returning investors Makers Fund, Courtside Ventures, and Steve Pagliuca, co-chairman of Bain Capital. Phil Sanderson, co-founder of Griffin Gaming Partners, will join WinZO's board of directors.
"We are super excited to partner with the Griffin team," said Paavan Nanda, co-founder, WinZO. "Their incredible experience and precious insights across the global media & entertainment landscape shall be valuable as we continue to disrupt the Indian gaming ecosystem. With this raise, we plan to grow much faster and become an even more lovable product for our consumers. WinZO is poised and strategically well-positioned to be one of the first 'Made in India' products that will rule the world in coming years."
With a focus on competitive multiplayer gaming experiences, WinZO's mission is to create a culturally relevant mobile games platform with broad-based adoption. WinZO seeks to position itself at the forefront of Indian gaming culture with an expansive influencer network catering to more than 50 million registered users. The platform is currently offered in 12 languages, unlocking demographics that have historically gone underserved.
"We are excited to make Griffin Gaming Partners' first investment in India backing WinZO, the company behind the largest social gaming app in the country," commented Nick Tuosto, co-founder, Griffin Gaming Partners and managing director and head of gaming, LionTree. "The company is led by best-in-class management with an extraordinary product vision. We saw in WinZO's games incredible retention and monetization metrics we believe set the company up for continued explosive growth and are proud to support the team on the journey."
WinZO's Series C raise represents yet another meaningful milestone reached by the company since its establishment in 2018. The company has grown its revenues tenfold over the last 12 months, and has partnered with over 100 leading game developers to realize the full potential of the Indian mobile gaming market through in-game integration of WinZO's social gaming framework.
"WinZO's growth is a testament to the value the company is unlocking in the Indian market." added Michael Cheung, general partner, Makers Fund. "We are excited to continue to support WinZO and their leadership team who combine expertise and unique local insights with a strong vision to grow the Indian games and entertainment sector."
