14th November, 2018 – Venture capital fund Vereeni Investments has agreed a strategic partnership with investment and M&A brokerage RB Capital to acquire a 20 per cent equity share in casino and slots development studio Kalamba Games.
The deal is based on a seven-figure investment in return for 20 per cent of Kalamba. The strategic partnership will accelerate the introduction of innovative new promotional and social capabilities to Kalamba operators, as well as raising the bar in terms of operator differentiation, player entertainment and profitability.
It will also empower Kalamba to better address region-specific market demands at a time when the global gaming landscape is becoming increasingly fragmented.
Kalamba, which was founded in 2016 and that has already launched a range of high performing titles, was selected for the investment after showing high growth potential. RB Capital has a strong track record of identifying up and coming companies within the gaming space.
The investment in Kalamba will complement the other innovative brands in which Vereeni has holdings, including companies from across the iGaming, business intelligence, software development, crypto and blockchain verticals.
It will also give Vereeni and RB Capital the opportunity to work alongside several experienced industry names, such as Kalamba co-founders Steve Cutler and Alex Cohen.
The combined expertise of Vereeni, RB Capital and the Kalamba management team will help position the supplier as a serious contender within slots development over the coming years.
Tim Heath, Founding Partner, Vereeni Investments, said: “In less than two years, Kalamba Games has displayed the creativity and expertise required to make a major splash in slots development. By taking a significant equity share, we are confident that Vereeni Investments can help Kalamba Games reach the next level in its development.
“We are also thrilled to have struck this deal alongside RB Capital, which brings an unmatched level of experience across the iGaming space. This investment is the latest exciting addition to Vereeni’s ‘Level Up’ investment fund, which is helping numerous innovative young companies scale competitively.”
Steve Cutler, CEO and Co-Founder, Kalamba Games, said: “Alex Cohen and I, as well as the whole team at Kalamba, are very excited that we have joined forces with Vereeni and RB Capital, who bring the financial resources and strategic capital, that match our vision for being a tier one supplier in the casino games industry.
“The investment gives us the ability to scale up the development teams in Krakow, maintain our already aggressive velocity and build the Games Platform coupled with the engagement and retention tools, that the industry still desperately needs. We will also be setting up the new head office in Malta, where we will continue to strengthen the business development, marketing and finance teams.
“This fantastic deal is the next step on our journey to becoming the “greatest”. Working with Tim, Julian and their teams, will accelerate the vision we set ourselves two years ago when we saw the obvious gaps in the market. 2019 will be a very important year for us and we are looking forward to surpassing the ambitious goals we have, as well as firmly cementing our position as the next generation games powerhouse.”
Julian Buhagiar, Co-Founder, RB Capital, said: “It is truly a pleasure for us to be working with Steve, Alex and all the team at Kalamba. We’ve been watching them closely for a while now, and in a short time they have built a very compelling games portfolio. It is very exciting to be supporting their efforts to acquire new territories with their disruptive content. We see significant opportunities for growth ahead for Kalamba.”
Kalamba Games has already built a strong reputation within iGaming and was nominated for the ‘Game to Watch’ award at ICE 2018, as well as the ‘Software Rising Star’ and ‘Innovation in Slots Provision’ awards at the Egaming Review B2B Awards 2018.
Kalamba’s dynamic teams based in Malta and Poland have already released 11 titles in less than a year from first game launch, aided by an experienced management team dedicated to making operators more profitable via higher player lifetime values and marketing ROI.
Kalamba is the latest company to receive a direct capital injection from Vereeni Investments. Based in Malta and founded in 2017 by Coingaming Group CEO Tim Heath, Vereeni has crafted a thriving ecosystem of complementary investments through meticulous searching.
To date Vereeni has accumulated a wealth of strategic investments aimed at aiding and advancing the iGaming industry, including companies such as OneTouch, Sherpa, Coolbet, Global Gaming, Hexagon, The Games Company, Puntaa, Skrilla, Falcon Dive and Singular.
For more information, please contact:
Square in the Air Communications
James Bennett
+44 (0) 20 3586 1982
[email protected]
About Vereeni Investments
Vereeni Investments is an early stage venture capital firm focused on fintech, insuretech, gambling, sportsbetting, machine learning & business intelligence, casino software, blockchain, and cryptocurrency verticals. Based in Malta, Vereeni’s mission is to accelerate the potential of each investment through leveraging their insights, network, and access to strategic capital.
Founded in 2017 by Timothy John Heath, Vereeni Investments has created a thriving ecosystem with complementary ventures thereby increase the value of their partners and bringing success to the group as a whole. The company has an extensive investment portfolio with assets across a variety of industries, including gambling, media, software development, financial services and crypto and blockchain related companies.
Vereeni has recently launched a $100m tech fund called “Level Up” that is focused exclusively on seed- and A- stage opportunities in gaming and fintech. To date the fund has accumulated a wealth of strategic investments into a diversified portfolio, including companies such as OneTouch, Sherpa, Coolbet, Global Gaming, Hexagon, The Games Company, Kalamba Games, Puntaa, Skrilla, Falcon Dive and Singular.
RB Capital is a specialist investment and M&A brokerage, combining best-in-breed expertise for growth, funding, mergers and acquisitions across gaming, fintech and media verticals. Founded in 2014, all investment partners have combined experience of funding, building and selling businesses, having held significant strategic and investment positions in several key blue-chip verticals. This high-level knowledge is combined with in-depth expertise of the key issues within sub-verticals such as affiliate networks, blockchain and digital rights management.
RB Capital combines strategic vision with structured investment, acquisition and exit strategy to assist with the challenges of funding and growing smaller businesses into profitable cash generative entities. The company works with people, products and ideas believed to be truly disruptive and unique.
Founded in December 2016 by Steve Cutler and Alex Cohen, Kalamba Games is a young and ambitious international games studio based in Malta and Krakow, focused on providing slots and casino content to the real money gaming industry.
By leveraging their extensive experience, Kalamba identified an opportunity in the marketplace for a supplier, which brings the best of social casino to RMG. The product vision is to drive higher engagement and retention for their partners, through disruptive game and promotional features, that improve the user experience and player lifetime value.
In less than two years, Kalamba has gone from nothing to building a formidable team, a highly flexible and fully compliant multi-channel framework, released over 12 tiles and continue to show above average growth rates.
