JetSynthesys secures investment from Krafton, others for global expansion

JetSynthesys founder and CEO Rajan Navani

Digital entertainment and technology company JetSynthesys on April 16 announced a new investment round led by South Korean gaming giant Krafton to fuel its global expansion and bolster its technology investments.

The round also saw participation from NAFA Private Equity and existing investors Pratithi Investments, a private investment arm of the Kris Gopalakrishnan Family Office, Adar Poonawalla-led Serum Institute and the Navani family-owned Jetline Group, the company said without disclosing the investment amount. JetSynthesys is a part of the diversified Jetline Group of Companies.

The fundraise comes less than a month after Krafton acquired a controlling stake in Nautilus Mobile, a JetSynthesys-owned game development studio, for Rs 118 crore. JetSynthesys continues to hold a significant minority stake in Nautilus Mobile.

Krafton is also an investor in Nodwin Gaming, an esports company incubated by JetSynthesys and now owned by Nazara Technologies.

JetSynthesys founder Rajan Navani told Moneycontrol the investment marks an important step in the company's journey from being a primarily family office-backed firm to attracting strategic and financial investors for its ambitious global expansion plans.

Jetline Group and other family offices have infused around $100 million into the company, Navani said. This includes a Rs 300-crore (around $40 million) investment in 2020.

As India’s gaming sector matures and sets its sights on becoming a major global hub, Navani believes this is the right time to pursue more aggressive growth strategies.

"Given the size of the opportunity today for a large digital media and entertainment technology company coming out of India for the world, I believe we’ve built a pretty aggressive plan for a 20x revenue growth over the next six years. We are also looking at a margin expansion from a 15 percent PAT (Profit after Tax) to 30 percent PAT," Navani said.

He mentioned that as an organisation, they have spent 8-10 years strengthening their foundation. "We now want to bring other pools of capital, because each brings different kinds of value. A financial investor will drive value creation, which is very different from a family office. You also want to bring strategics, which can bring us great scale" he said.

Read: Indian gaming industry to shape entertainment for next generation: JetSynthesys' Rajan Navani

Where will the money go?

JetSynthesys plans to spend the capital raised across four key areas - global expansion, technology investments, strengthening its talent base, and acquisitions.

The company plans to replicate its India playbook, built on community-driven engagement, proprietary technology platforms, and strategic collaborations, in markets such as Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, and Southeast Asia. This includes both organic growth as well as inorganic growth through acquisitions to enter new markets.

The company also plans to deepen its footprint in India through targeted acquisitions and by becoming a preferred partner for global media and entertainment firms entering the country.

Navani also believes that future growth and monetisation will happen at the convergence of technology, content, hyper-personalization using artificial intelligence, and immersive experiences powered extended reality.

"We are moving now to a very strong experiential economy. We've seen the consumer spends that are now happening on music festivals. That requires deep technology investments" he said.

"Having a large digital base, bringing those consumers into the physical world and being able to monetise them better is a big opportunity for us" Navani added.

In terms of gaming, Navani said that India still accounts for just about 1.5 percent to 2 percent of the global industry in terms of monetisation. "Even if that share grows to 5 percent over the next six years, I think that's a big opportunity," he said.

Krafton India CEO Sean Hyunil Sohn said "This investment aligns with our long-term belief in the potential of India as a global innovation hub in gaming and digital entertainment. JetSynthesys has consistently shown a forward-thinking approach to building meaningful digital IPs and platforms that resonate across geographies,"

Krafton, the maker of the popular battle royale title Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI), has invested over $200 million in several Indian startups in areas such as interactive entertainment, gaming, Esports, and technology, since 2021.

JetSynthesys's growing portfolio

JetSynthesys, which also counts cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar among its backers, has been building a diverse portfolio in gaming and esports since it was founded in 2014.

This includes an internal game studio that has developed mobile games such as Sachin Saga, Being Salman, and Super Ludo, a global business partnership and publishing wing, and esports tournament organiser Skyesports that was acquired in August 2021.

The company claims to have a catalogue of more than 300 games across multiple platforms including Android, iOS, HTML and Java. It has offices in Japan, Singapore, Europe, the United Kingdom and the United States.

JetSynthesys also incubated Jetapult, a company that follows the invest and operate model, providing long-term funding and full-stack support to global mobile game studios across the entire lifecycle of development and publishing. Jetapult has subsequently raised funds from venture capital firms Accel Partners and Fireside Ventures.

The company's gaming division, which includes its video games and esports units, account for about 40-45 percent of its overall revenues, Navani said.

Besides gaming, JetSynthesys also operates a portfolio of products and services spanning digital entertainment, wellness, and livelihoods.

The digital entertainment offerings include digital distribution unit Global Music Junction, a sports destination 100MB in a joint venture with Sachin Tendulkar, sports and esports marketing agency Real Sports, educational news and knowledge app KidzByte, creator monetisation platform Fanory, and short-form mobile video platform Wakau.

JetSynthesys is also the official India partner for Warner Music for all things related to music label licensing and acquisition, artist management, event management, original content creation across music, short videos and films. Navani said that its music entertainment and video offerings contribute about 30-35 percent of its revenues.

Among other products include a holistic health app RightLife, meditation and sleep app ThinkRight, and JetMetaphy, a digital immersive solution provider for brands.