Oxford Capital leads Outplay Entertainment funding

Oxford Capital has led a $5 million funding round for Outplay Entertainment Ltd, a developer of Free-to-Play mobile games. Pentech Ventures and the Scottish Investment Bank also participated in the round.

PRESS RELEASE

Oxford Capital has led a $5m funding round for Outplay Entertainment Ltd., a leading developer of Free-to-Play mobile games.

Free-to-Play games increasingly dominate over traditional paid-for titles in a huge global consumer market worth an estimated $35bn+ pa and growing rapidly. Oxford Capital joins leading investment fund Pentech Ventures and the Scottish Investment Bank who have both backed the company from its early days and participated in the round. The fresh capital will enable the company to fully invest in the people and resources it needs to deliver a full pipeline of planned global releases.

Led by industry veterans Douglas and Richard Hare (The Collective, Foundation 9 Entertainment), Outplay is based in Dundee, the birthplace of the Grand Theft Auto franchise and the emerging centre for UK games development talent. The company focuses on creating high quality, highly engaging titles across all major platforms (Apple, Google, Amazon, and Samsung) in the most popular mobile gaming segments. Titles to date include Bubble Blaze and Monster Legacy, a title which was selected by Apple’s App Store to be featured as “Editors’ Choice” in 49 countries including the US and the UK on its launch date in March.

Martyn Holman, Investment Director at Oxford Capital said:
“We are truly excited to be increasing our exposure to this rapidly evolving market space. We have for some time been seeking an appropriate opportunity to invest in the segment, but in a market with such a diversity of consumer choice it has taken a company of truly differentiated capability for us to commit.

“Outplay has built an impressive portfolio of increasingly higher quality, commercially successful games. They have made significant breakthroughs in a crowded market space by building on each prior success. The company’s management team has an outstanding track record and we believe it has the vision and skill to become a significant player in the global games market.”

Douglas Hare, Co-founder and CEO of Outplay said:
“We are delighted to be partnering with Oxford Capital in this next stage of our company’s journey. Oxford Capital has already demonstrated some great insights into our business as part of the investment process. Adding their sector and function specific experience to our talented board will help us to significantly enhance our strategy and reach.

“The global games market is at an exciting point for any new investor. Market growth is accelerating, consumers are proliferating, device capability exploding, and in-game monetisation opportunities are following in lock step. We look forward to embracing future opportunities with Oxford Capital on board”

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For further information please contact:

Martyn Holman, Investment Director +44 (0)20 3051 4392
Oxford Capital Partners mholman@oxcp.com
@holmanma

Mike Lord, Lord Public Relations +44 (0)7831 401 311
lord.mike@btinternet.com

Notes to editors

About Oxford Capital (www.oxcp.com)
Founded in 1999 Oxford Capital is a specialist investment manager working on behalf of institutional and private investors.

The firm is a leading UK growth capital and infrastructure capital investor. It manages a range of investment strategies designed for institutions, family offices, and sophisticated private investors.

Oxford Capital has offices in the UK, Switzerland and Hong Kong. It m