The South Korean company WeMade Entertainment has made a successful exit. In 2018, it bought 4.2% of Shift Up’s shares for $7.4 million and in 2023, sold them for $53.9 million.
This means that over the past five years, the price of the studio, known for its mobile game with sexualized female characters (unfortunately, this is one of the key features of the product), has grown by more than 700%.
According to the Chinese media outlet GameLook, the buyer of 2 million shares previously held by WeMade Entertainment was the Singaporean holding company Aceville, which is a subsidiary of Tencent.
GameLook noted that selling the shares was a necessary move for WeMade Entertainment. The company suffered a loss of approximately $64.5 million in the first half of the year. The current deal will help them address their budget deficit.
It is also important to note:
- The deal allowed Tencent to increase its stake in Shift Up to more than 24%;
- Tencent is not only an investor but also a partner of Shift Up. The distribution of Goddess of Victory: NIKKE is managed by Level Infinite, a division of Tencent Games;
- Today, Goddess of Victory: NIKKE is among the top three highest-grossing mobile games for Tencent, with only Honor of Kings and PUBG MOBILE generating higher monthly revenue;
- The monthly revenue of Goddess of Victory: NIKKE, excluding China, is $32 million (according to analytical service AppMagic);
- Since its launch in November 2022, the game has generated over $400 million for the publisher and developer (revenue taking into account app store revenue and taxes, is significantly higher.).