Canadian esports ownership company OverActive Media Group has raised over $22 million (£17.1 million) in a new funding round.
OverActive Media Group is the parent company of North American organisation Splyce and Overwatch League franchise Toronto Defiant.
Current shareholders have invested more funds into the group, but new investors who helped to tally up the impressive total haven’t been revealed at the point of writing. The use of the funding is clear, however.
In November 2018, it was announced that Splyce was set to be fully acquired by OverActive Media after an initial investment of $1.5m (£1.07m) was made in April. These new funds will be used to finalise the acquisition of Splyce within the next 30 days and to finance the Toronto Defiant.
Chris Overholt, CEO and President of OverActive Media briefly commented: “This is another key milestone in the evolution of OverActive Media into a premier global esports ownership platform.”
Last October, OverActive Media received $21.5 million (£16.7 million) in equity financing. At the time, it was reported that these funds would be allocated to its Overwatch League franchise, paying for operations costs and franchising fees.
Splyce is one of 10 organisations that was selected by Riot Games to be a long-term partner of the LEC, the competition formerly known as the EU LCS. The buy-in price for Splyce is €8 million (£7,130,400) since it fielded a team in the 2018 season, whereas newcomers will have to pay €10.5 million (£9,358,650).
Esports Insider says: OverActive Media has already proven that it wants to make a splash in esports by committing to acquire Splyce, entering the Overwatch League, and securing a spot in the LEC. Receiving the necessary funds to cover these moves is a promising sign for the group, but the powers that be need to remember that there’s such a thing as growing too fast. Bravo, though!