FTX in talks to invest in Indian gaming startup MPL, sources say

The MPL is in talks to raise capital from a number of investors, including the FTX exchange, as the mobile gaming startup prepares to make a web3 push, three sources familiar with the matter told me.

An investment will mark a significant shift in the Bengaluru-headquartered startup's future outlook as it gears up to expand its offerings in a new, buzzy category.

MPL operates over 60 mobile games, some of which are sports-based, card-based, and fantasy. It has told some existing and new potential investors that it plans to launch play-to-earn and NFT-based games later this year, the sources said, requesting anonymity as the deliberations are ongoing and they are not authorized to speak to the press.

One of the sources said that MPL was looking to raise the new investment as an extension to its Series E round at a $2.5 billion valuation.

The terms of the investment could change. FTX didn't respond to a request for comment. MPL does not comment on speculations, as a company policy, said an MPL spokesman.

In a December investor presentation, MPL disclosed that it has over 5 million monthly active users. The average revenue per user was $5.

MPL said in the presentation that it was building a game distribution platform where 500 million tournaments are played each month.

A number of established startups in India are starting to explore opportunities in the web3 space. Dream11 is looking to lead a $100 million investment in Rario, according to a report. Cricket NFT startup FanCraze, which was recently valued at $500 million in a round led by Insight Partners, plans to expand into gaming.

The gaming platform Gambit was acquired by Glance, a subsidiary of the InMobi Group that is backed by both Reliance and Google.

FTX, which is valued at $32 billion, will officially enter the Indian startup scene with the forthcoming investment in MPL.

In contrast, FTX's rival has made a number of investments in the country, including the top two local exchanges. WazirX is owned by Binance, which also owns two Indian exchanges.