Zupee, an India-based trivia and gaming app development company backed by internet company Smile Group, has raised $30m in its series B round at a valuation of $500m.
Co-led by venture capital firms WestCap Group and Tomales Bay Capital, the round also featured VC peers Matrix Partners and Orios Venture Partners, most of which are returning investors from previous rounds.
Founded in 2018, Zupee’s platform lets users compete for real money via trivia games, as well as other board games. It was incubated by Smile Group – itself focused on incubating, developing and investing in internet companies – which also provided around $1m in seed funding back in April 2019, according to VCCircle.
Zupee currently boasts around 10 million users in India alone, with more around the globe. The new capital will be used to expand its product portfolio, its market reach and its team.
Almost exactly a year later, Smile returned for an $8m series A alongside four other investors, Matrix Partners – which led the round – WestCap Group, Orios Venture Partners and Falcon Edge Capital.
WestCap and Matrix came back again in January 2021 for another $10m round, which WestCap led.
In the past six months alone, Zupee has seen a five-fold increase in its valuation, as its January fundraise was based on a valuation of $100m.
Zupee CEO Dilsher Singh said: “We innovate to ensure our games provide an intersection between skill and entertainment, enabling our users to earn while they play. We thank our investors for believing in our purpose and enabling us to progress on our journey to transforming it to reality.”
