Gaming company Metasports Interactive raised $20 million in user acquisition funding from London-based growth financing company Metica to accelerate growth for its multi-player cricket game Hitwicket.
The company said the capital will be deployed towards scaling marketing and user acquisition at a time when the firm is targeting its next phase of global expansion.
The funding comes alongside a technology partnership with Metica, deploying its platform to optimise the game’s revenue performance and strengthen unit economics.
“With Hitwicket, our vision is to reach over a billion cricket fans globally and build a truly world-class gaming business from India. This partnership with Metica gives us the capital and the tools to move faster in international markets without diluting ownership. We’re proud to be among the first Indian gaming companies to access this kind of structured UA funding, and we see it as a model that can unlock real scale for studios with strong fundamentals,” said Kashyap Reddy, co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO), Metasports Interactive.
Last week, Bengaluru-based AAA-focused game technology studio Lightfury Games raised $11 million in a pre-Series A round. The fresh capital will be used to complete development of the company’s flagship AAA title, eCricket, which is slated for launch later this year.
Meanwhile, Metasports Interactive said it has a base of over 18 million users across 109 countries since the launch of its Hitwicket cricket game. It said the company was targeting an eight-fold growth over the next 18 months.
Hitwicket was launched in 2020.
“User acquisition funding is reserved for companies that demonstrate strong unit economics and repeatable growth. Metasports Interactive stood out because of Hitwicket’s ability to scale efficiently across both India and global markets. We see a major opportunity not only to provide growth funding, but also to support growth through our technology by helping optimise in-game revenue to increase lifetime value,” Phil Mohr, chief executive officer (CEO), Metica, said.
Metasports Interactive has raised $8 million in funding from Prime Venture Partners and Horizon Ventures (Singapore). It is backed by cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle.
The company was co-founded by Kashyap Reddy and Keerti Singh.