Carry1st, a South African mobile gaming business, has secured US $27 million in investment to further grow Pay1st, its monetisation-as-a-service offering, as well as to create, license, and publish new games.
Carry1st, a mobile games publisher with a Cape Town headquarters that targets the first generation of African smartphone users, was established in 2018. So far, the company has reached millions of users around the continent with titles including Mine Rescue and SpongeBob: Krusty Cook-Off. To more effectively monetize content, the business has also established proprietary payments and an online marketplace.
It received US $6 million in Series A funding in May 2021, followed by a US $20 million Series A extension round a year later. It has since received US $27 million in funding total, led by BITKRAFT Ventures and including Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), TTV Capital, Alumni Ventures, Lateral Capital, Kepple Africa Ventures, and Konvoy.
The successful collaboration with Call of Duty: Mobile in South Africa in Q4 2022 and the upcoming new partnerships that will be introduced in 2023 are the driving forces behind this capital increase. Additionally, Carry1st increased its income dramatically over the last 12 months, had the first game from its CrazyHubs gaming accelerator become the most downloaded game in the US, and struck a number of agreements that will support the company’s expansion in 2023.
With the funding, Carry1st will be able to create, acquire, and release new games as well as grow its monetisation-as-a-service offering, Pay1st.
“We’re delighted to partner with BITKRAFT, one of the world’s top gaming VC firms, alongside a16z and other existing investors as we continue on our mission to scale awesome content in Africa. 2022 was a year of significant growth but together with our partners we look forward to making 2023 even better,” said Cordel Robbin-Coker, Carry1st co-founder and CEO.
The majority of the world’s young people live in Africa, according to Jens Hilgers, founding general partner of BITKRAFT Ventures.
“This upcoming generation will grow up digitally native with video games as their primary entertainment preference. We have full conviction in Carry1st’s impressive founding team and their vision of building out foundational infrastructure and localised content, ensuring that gaming and interactive entertainment in Africa will thrive,” he said.
