Drake Star Partners: game deals reached almost $50 billion in 2021 so far

In 2021, video game companies have set a new record in terms of M&A and investment deals. Their total value has already reached almost $50 billion.

Investment banking firm Drake Star Partners shared the data in its latest report on June 2. A total of 527 deals were closed or announced in the first five months of 2021, hitting $49 billion in disclosed deal value.

The largest portion of the whole sum is 142 M&A deals, valued at $21 billion. Besides that, private companies received $4.2 billion in 314 minority investments. 23 companies went public through IPO with $5.4 billion proceeds, while 3 companies made SPAC deals with a value of $4.2 billion. And public companies raised $14.2 billion in secondary offerings.

According to the report, consolidation of the video games market continues, thanks to the actions of Tencent, Microsoft, Embracer Group, Zynga, and other companies. More companies are now going public, including Roblox, AppLovin, Nexters, and Playtika. Drake Star Partners also notes that Apple’s IDFA changes are another driver of consolidation.

The full report can be downloaded here.