Top 3 Landmark Deals in 2021

January 27, 2022

2 min read

While the Philippines was still experiencing a series of lockdowns brought about by COVID-19 outbreaks throughout 2021, startups in the country remained resilient. Simultaneously, Philippine startups continued to impress international investors such as Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Warburg Pincus, and General Atlantic. Here are the 3 Landmark Deals of 2021:

Landmark Deal 1: Kumu

In October 2021, Kumu, the leading social entertainment app and live streaming platform in the Philippines, raised an undisclosed amount in their Series C funding round which was led by General Atlantic. Foxmont Capital Partners, Kickstart Ventures, Gentree Fund, CORE Capital, Openspace Ventures, and Globe Telecom are other notable investors that participated in the round. The funds raised will be allocated to content creation investments in the Philippines and around the world. The transaction is General Atlantic’s first investment in the Philippines and the first of its kind in the country – the largest equity financing deal for a Filipino startup that is not founded as a subsidiary of a conglomerate.

Landmark Deal 2: Yield Guild Games (YGG)

Yield Guild Games (YGG), a Philippine-based gaming startup focused on blockchain, raised $4.6 million in a venture funding round led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z). The raised funds will be invested in YGG’s digital assets in games and virtual worlds across play-to-earn ecosystems to accommodate the startup’s growing global community of 48,000 gamers. In addition to the transaction, YGG raised $12.5 million in a token sale. According to Arianna Simpson, a general partner at a16z, the convergence between crypto and gaming is both an emerging and exciting area in technology today and YGG is leading the establishment of the play-to-earn model in the industry.

Landmark Deal 3: Mynt

2021 has been a milestone year for Mynt, the financial technology company backed by Globe Telecom and the developer of the GCash payments platform. Mynt completed two funding rounds in 2021 – a $175 million later stage venture round led by Bow Wave Capital Management and a $300 million equity deal led by Warburg Pincus – allowing it to achieve a valuation of approximately $2 billion, making it the country’s first unicorn. With the raised funds and support from global investors, Mynt hopes to further expand its digital financial services and support the financial inclusion initiatives of the Philippines.