Immutable, an Australia-headquartered developer of games based on non-fungible tokens (NFTs), has formed a $500m strategic investment fund with fellow corporates Animoca Brands and GameStop among its partners.
The fund will provide equity funding and grants to developers of projects and games on Immutable X, an online NFT minting platform the company has built for the Ethereum network. The minting process enables developers to create games allowing players to buy, sell and trade items using NFTs, which, in theory, have real-world value.
The company raised $200m in a March 2022 series C round featuring several corporate investors including blockchain game publisher Animoca, one of several partners with which it is setting up co-funds through the newly formed vehicle.
Video game retailer GameStop is also a partner, as are three existing Immutable backers: Web3, gaming investment platform Bitkraft, and venture capital firms King River Capital and AirTree Ventures.
Robbie Ferguson, Immutable’s co-founder and president, told TechCrunch the capital for the newly launched fund was sourced from its venture partners as well as its balance sheet. The grants will come from Digital Worlds NFTS, the foundation that issues the company’s IMX token.
GameStop’s participation comes four months after it received a grant from Digital Worlds NFTS that could eventually total more than 56,000 IMX tokens (valued at $100m at that point), in connection with an agreement involving it integrating Immutable X’s technology into its NFT marketplace.
Ferguson told TechCrunch that Immutable plans to collaborate with other game developers, potentially aligning it with one of its other investors, China-based Tencent, one of the world’s largest game publishers.
Another Tencent-backed game developer, Voodoo, is reportedly channeling more than $200m into blockchain games, though strict Chinese regulations covering the NFT space make it unlikely Tencent itself will be directly involved in either venture.
Image courtesy of Immutable.
