Monk's Hill commits $5m to Hong Kong-based Playlab
Hong Kong-based mobile game studio Playlab has raised $5 million in Series B funding from Monk's Hill Ventures.
Playlab will use the new capital to build its operations in Southeast Asia, with the goal of becoming the region's largest gaming firm, according to a release. So far the majority of the company's revenue has come from Western markets, but it hopes to take advantage of projected growth in Southeast Asia's mobile gaming market, where revenues are expected to grow from $1 billion in 2014 to $7 billion by 2019.
Founded in Bangkok in 2012, Playlab already has an international presence since its acquisition last year of Philippines-based Anino Games, now Anino Playlab. The company plans to continue this strategy of strategic acquisitions, including intellectual property deals; it is also seeking to partner with international publishers for their operations in Southeast Asia.
Playlab's most well-known product to date is Juice Cubes, a puzzle game for iOS and Android, which it acquired from Angry Birds maker Rovio. The studio is working on an in-house produced remake of the game, as well as its own original material.
"Monk's Hill adds immediate value to our team. Together, we will be able to place more strategic bets and invest in the market to fully take over the region," said Playlab co-founder and CEO Jakob Lykkegaard Pedersen. "Until now, we have kept Playlab bootstrapped, but with our rapid growth and so many opportunities on the horizon, the time for us to invest is now."
Monk's Hill is currently raising its first Southeast Asia-focused fund, focused on early-stage technology investments in the region. The fund launched last year with a target of S$100 million ($80 million). The fund's backers include Cisco Investments, which committed $10 million last month.
Singapore's government has also supported Monk's Hill. The firm was one of six VC firms to receive S$10 million through the Early Stage Venture Fund initiative, started by the National Research Foundation to encourage high-tech start-ups in Singapore.
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