The investor started the talk by discussing the drawbacks. As he greeted Salone Sehgal to his office, the venture capitalist (VC) shouted, "Oh, so you are making games for ladies!" He smiled and said, "What is a lady doing in the huge guys' world of gaming?" He kept asking questions, "Are you the only one doing it?" His coworkers seemed astounded as well. An uneasy hush followed. The sole female in the room, Sehgal, did not seem perplexed. Around 60% of casual gamers worldwide are women, she said. Sadly, fewer than 20% of games and businesses are created for them, she said. Building games for women has several benefits, she said. And being the odd one out is fantastic.
Sehgal undoubtedly had a record that was exceptional. She co-founded TrulySocial in December 2013 with the goal of creating an immersive, story-based social environment for international female audiences. During her time with Barclays, Morgan Stanley, and KPMG, she worked as a PE (private equity) expert and M&A banker, respectively. Having completed over $10 billion in M&A transactions, Sehgal was now making her first foray into entrepreneurship. Despite her well-known past, she had to do what any motivated new entrepreneur would do: pitch for venture capital funding. "The exchange wasn't successful. She recalls, "We didn't get the money.
However, Sehgal received lots of rejections. Interestingly, one of the VCs expressed interest in placing the wager. However, his method of endorsing the notion was absurd. He said, "I'm going to get my wife to test the stuff." Sehgal, incensed, retaliated in kind. She questioned, "Would you still want your wife to try to comprehend yourself if I am establishing a blockchain industry?" Understandably, the irate investor decided against supporting the project. Sehgal finally succeeded in securing the support of major companies like Nazara Games and London Venture Partners (LVP). The tenacious creator scaled the business, operated it for three and a half years, and then was forced to close it down when a takeover agreement failed.
The original founder is now a funder. Sehgal joined NVP, an early-stage investment firm with a focus on the interactive gaming and entertainment industries, located in London. What remained constant was the remark that she may be the odd one out. The insult, "She looks like a diversity hire," was frequent. Sehgal was adept at muting outside noise at this point. "I've had enough of the naysayers. It's helped me get a pretty thick skin, she adds, adding that she returned to India in 2019 after working abroad for over two years.
Sehgal intended to launch a VC firm at home that would only invest in the gaming industry. The concept was interesting. Because of the rapid expansion of smartphones and the low cost of data, India was on the verge of a gaming explosion. According to research from Redseer, there were an estimated 250 million gamers in India in 2018 and the market was worth just under $1 billion by FY19. A few months after the pandemic-caused lockdown, in August 2020, Sehgal and Justin Keeling founded Lumikai, an early-stage venture capital firm for video games and interactive media.
The time appeared to be ideal. The whole nation was addicted to mobile devices, OTT, and online gaming. By FY20, gaming had grown to a $1.8 billion market, but the whole industry that had expanded following the epidemic was still in its infancy. However, Lumikai found it challenging to look for possibilities. It was an easy explanation. RMG (real money gaming) accounted for the largest share of the Indian gaming market with a sizable 49 percent in FY20. This meant that the major players in fantasy sports, such as Dream11, MPL, Games 24X7, and similar entities, already had supporters who had placed sizable wagers. For a fund that entered the game late and held tickets that ranged in size from $200K to $2M,Lumikai didn’t stand a chance in the crowded market where the incumbents had deep pockets.
But Lumikai focused on a peculiar strategy. Sehgal jokes, "When life offers you lemons, you create lemonade." The co-founders made the decision to create a gaming asset portfolio that went beyond fantasy gaming. Sehgal states that Lumikai made the decision to examine content, platforms, tools, technology, and infrastructure. She continues, highlighting that the scope of the gaming [sector] for us "was far bigger than just fantasy games." The emphasis was on placing wagers that would win their respective categories.
Let's go to October 2022. With more than a dozen unique bets, Lumikai is in a good position. Loco is a mobile-only live game streaming platform that we'll discuss first. According to Keeling, it has amassed over 52 million users in the past two years. He emphasises that monthly active users (MAUs), daily active users (DAUs), and monthly active streamers have all climbed significantly over the past year. He notes that Loco has secured $51 million from Lumikai as well as a number of prestigious investors, including Makers Fund, Krafton, and Hiro Capital.
intresting..!!
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