Mumbai: Stephan Pagliuca, Co-Chairman of private equity firm Bain Capital, has invested in WinZO through a mix of undisclosed primary and $1 Million secondaries. As a part of this investment transaction, WinZO has also conducted one of the first ESOPs buy-out worth $1Million for its early investors and employees.
Stephan, who is also a co-owner of the popular NBA Basketball team, Boston Celtics, has invested through his office Pags group, demonstrating his bullish projections about WinZO’s performance and rapidly booming Indian gaming market. It is to be mentioned that Gaming was one of the very few industries in India that not only survived but showed positive growth amidst the COVID pandemic and lockdown. This is Mr. Pagliuca’s first investment in India.
Earlier this August, the vernacular gaming platform, WinZO, announced its $18MM Series B led by global interactive entertainment fund, Makers Fund based in Singapore, and New York-based Courtside Ventures. Both the funds made their first-ever investment in India through WinZO.
“We are thrilled to be backed by Steve, an investor of high repute in our growth journey. The kind of confidence exhibited by industry experts from across the globe is a testament to the scalable, sustainable and robust business we have built-in a very short span of time. It’s soul-satisfying to be able to generate value through ESOP buyout for our early employees too. This is just the beginning of an exciting journey towards solving social entertainment for Bharat.” said Saumya Singh Rathore, Co-Founder, WinZO.