Quizzing app Zupee raises $30 million, valuation jumps to half-a-billion dollars

• The company’s valuation has grown five times since January 2021 to $500 million in August.
• Zupee has raised about $49 million to date from investors like WestCap Group, Tomales Bay Capital and others.
• The 3-year-old startup would also be looking for strategic acquisition to further accelerate its growth.

Skill-based online gaming platform Zupee has raised $30 million in a Series B round led by Silicon Valley-based WestCap Group and Tomales Bay Capital, at a valuation of $500 million. Existing investors Orios Venture Partners and Matrix Partners India also participated in this round.

The Gurugram-based gaming company was valued at $100 million in January 2021, when it raised $10 million in a round led by WestCap Group and Matrix Partners India. The company has raised about $49 million to date since its inception in 2018.

Zupee, which was founded by Dilsher Singh Malhi and Siddhant Saurabh in 2018, is a mobile app that enables users to participate in quiz tournaments across a range of topics. The app works with both Apple’s operating system iOS and Google. The company is expected to roll out a web-based offering with 7-8 more games.

It will use the latest funding to expand its portfolio and deepen user reach. The three-year-old startup would also be looking for strategic acquisition to further accelerate its growth.

Zupee claims to have 35 million registered users, primarily for Tier II and III regions of India between the 18-25 age group. About 15% of its user base are paying customers. The company collects a 10% fee for paid games and users can spend between one rupee to ₹10,000 on a game.

Other companies in the skill-based gaming segment include Dream11, Mobile Premier League (MPL) and Halaplay, among others.

Dream Sport, parent company of Dream 11, closed a $400 million round in March 2021. The secondary investment round was led by investors TCV, D1 Capital Partners and Falcon Edge. Earlier investors Tiger Global, ChrysCapital, TPG Growth, Steadview Capital and Footpath Ventures too participated in the round.

Mobile Premier League (MPL) had closed a $90 million funding round last year from SIG Global and early stage tech investor RTP Global, along with MDI Ventures and Pegasus Tech Ventures. The Series C round also saw participation from its existing investors Sequoia India, Go-Ventures, and Base Partners.

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