Esports platform Mobile Premier League secures $500,000 from employees

Bengaluru-based Galactus Funware Technology, which operates fantasy esports platform Mobile Premier League, has raised $500,000 (Rs 3.65 crore at current exchange rates) from its existing employees.

“We are privileged to work with people who have invested in the company’s future. This underlines the trust they have in MPL, and MPL’s faith in its people,” Joe Wadakethalakal, SVP, Corporate Development and Investor Relations at MPL, said in a statement released on Thursday.

The investment, the company explained, has been made as part of a unique new employee investment plan under which people working for the company could become its shareholders.

Under the scheme, announced back in December 2020, all MPL employees had the option to invest an amount between $2,300 and $23,000 in the company and acquire a portion of its stock. 

More than 10% of the startup’s 500-strong employee base participated, infusing a total sum of $500,000.

“This initiative was introduced so that our most valuable asset, our employees, get an opportunity to own part of MPL and participate in the company’s success,” Wadakethalakal added while commenting on the development.

The company said it plans to continue extending such opportunities to reward its employees in the future as well.

In September 2020, MPL had announced an ESOP buyback worth $3.2 million. The move came during the company’s Series C round where it raised $90 million from SIG, RTP Global, MDI Ventures, Pegasus Tech Ventures, and Sequoia India.

Founded in 2018 by Sai Srinivas and Shubh Malhotra, MPL serves a user base of over 6 crore in India with more than 70 games on its platform. It has also debuted in Indonesia and roped in 3.5+ million users just within a year of operations. The offices of the company are located in Bengaluru, Pune, Jakarta, and Singapore.