Drake Star

🎮 Headline: Games industry M&As valued at $10.5 billion in 2024 with 21% volume increase PocketGamer.biz breaks down the Drake Star Global Gaming Report 2024 with key highlights including: 🔵 M&As saw a 21% increase in volume in 2024 compared to the year prior, with 198 deals announced at $10.5 billion in disclosed value. 🔵 Between M&As and financings more broadly - investments included - 2024 saw disclosed value rise by 39% year-on-year to $27.3 billion, raised across 967 deals. 🔵 Two of 2024’s five biggest M&A deals occurred in Q4, those being Miniclip’s $1.2 billion acquisition of Easybrain and Modern Times Group MTG AB’s huge Plarium purchase. 🔵 Across the full year, BITKRAFT Ventures was the most active VC with 19 investment deals, followed by Andreessen Horowitz and Play Ventures with 15 each. The Games Fund was the most active seed-focused venture capitalist fund with nine deals. 👉 Read the full article for all of the details and highlights here: https://lnkd.in/dEV3Ympn #Gaming #MergersAndAcquisitions #InvestmentBanking

⚽ Drake Star’s Mohit Pareek 🔜 GDC joins other high-profile #SportsTech experts at the SportsPro Investor Roundtable and shares views on the next phase of #AI, overhyped trends, the impact of Trump, and the funding outlook for the next 12 months. In discussing which Sports Tech sectors will see the most growth over the next 12 months, Mohit notes: “There were more than US$4.4 Billion of private placements in sports technology during 2024 and roughly 25 percent of that went into the fan engagement space. We are very bullish about that segment in 2025 as well as the youth sports category which now has strong platforms, is ripe for consolidation and greater capital infusion.” 👇 Get all the expert insights from Mohit and others at the full article in comments below.

Variety reports on Drake Star’s latest deal! HEADLINE: ‘Dune,’ ‘Avatar’ Hollywood Marketing Agency Mob Scene Acquired by India’s Connekkt Media The article details the significance of the transaction and outlines some of Mob Scene’s high-profile work to date including marketing content and campaigns for: 🔵 “Dune: Part Two” 🔵 “Avatar: Way of Water” 🔵 “Barbie” 🔵 “Fast & Furious” 🔵 “Minions” Mob Scene Co-founder and CEO Tom Grane commented: “Joining forces with Connekkt Media marks an exciting new chapter for Mob Scene. Their cutting-edge media technology and deep understanding of global entertainment align perfectly with our creative vision. This partnership will allow us to push the boundaries of storytelling, expand our reach into dynamic new markets, and continue delivering innovative, emotionally compelling campaigns that resonate with audiences worldwide.” Varun Mathur, co-founder of Connekkt Media noted: “Mob Scene is the gold standard in Hollywood film marketing. As a global media company with its origin in India, this acquisition marks a strategic expansion for us into the U.S. and the rest of North America.” The article notes: “Drake Star’s Gregory Bedrosian and Mohit Pareek 🔜 GDC served as exclusive financial advisors on the deal.” 

📣 Deal Announcement: Drake Star Acts as Exclusive Financial Advisor to Mob Scene, a Hollywood Powerhouse, on its Sale to Connekkt Media! Connekkt Media, one of Asia’s largest and most successful media and entertainment-technology companies, today announced the acquisition of Mob Scene, a premier Hollywood marketing agency specializing in campaigns for film studios, television networks, and streaming services. Drake Star acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Mob Scene on this transaction. Known for its bold and emotionally resonant campaigns, Mob Scene recently delivered marketing for major films, including Dune: Part Two, Avatar: Way of Water, Barbie, and A Complete Unknown. The agency has also created compelling promotional content for critically acclaimed series, including The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, The Last of Us, and The Walking Dead. Mob Scene serves as the marketing content gatekeeper for the Avatar, Dune, Fast and Furious, and Jurassic World franchises. Huge congratulations to the Mob Scene and Connekkt Media teams on this landmark transaction! See the full press release for additional details on the deal and comments from: 🔵 Varun Mathur, Co-Founder of Connekkt Media 🔵 Tom Grane, Co-Founder and CEO of Mob Scene 🔵 Gregory Bedrosian, Managing Partner and CEO at Drake Star 🔵 Mohit Pareek 🔜 GDC, Principal at Drake Star Drake Star Deal Team: Gregory Bedrosian, Mohit Pareek, Pei Chao Zhuo #DigitalMedia #Marketing #MergersAndAcquisitions

🎮GamesBeat headline: Gaming M&A and financing deals grew 39% in 2024 | Drake Star Michael Metzger 🔜 GDC, Partner at Drake Star commenting on the #Gaming investment and M&A landscape notes: “Gaming M&A activity in 2024 experienced a 21% increase in deal volume over 2023, with 198 announced deals and $10.5B in disclosed value. As predicted, several high-profile M&A deals emerged from private equity firms. Public markets showed signs of recovery with the Drake Star Gaming Index of the leading public game companies growing 10.4% for the year.” Read the full article by VentureBeat’s Dean Takahashi, which breaks down the Drake Star Gaming Report, an outline of M&A deals in the space, stock market performance, the top buyers, the most active investors, and an outlook for what’s ahead. 👇 Link in the comments below. 

🏆 Exciting news to share: Drake Star was named Boutique TMT Investment Bank of the Year at the 16th Annual Americas M&A Atlas Awards by the Global M&A Network, LLC! The award ceremony, where Drake Star CEO & Managing Partner Gregory Bedrosian and Partner Sam Levy accepted the honors on behalf of the entire team, took place at the Metropolitan Club in New York recently. Gregory Bedrosian commented: “We are honored to be recognized as the Boutique TMT Investment Bank of the Year at the Americas M&A Atlas Awards. This award is a testament to the dedication of our global team, the trust of our clients, and our commitment to delivering outstanding results in the ever-evolving technology sector.” Ralf Philipp Hofmann, Managing Partner & Co-Founder of Drake Star, added: "This recognition reflects our deep industry expertise, our passion for innovation, and our relentless focus on creating value for our clients. We are grateful to our clients and partners for their continued trust, and we look forward to driving even more transformative M&A transactions in the future. Congrats to the entire team for this great achievement!" Head over to our blog post for more information on the awards and Drake Star as a firm: https://lnkd.in/eSBA56tT #Awards #MergersAndAcquisitions #InvestmentBanking #Tech 

🏆 Drake Star was awarded Cross Border M&A Deal of the Year at the 16th Annual Americas M&A Atlas Awards by the Global M&A Network, LLC for advising Envato on its sale to Shutterstock. Eric Ward, Managing Partner at Drake Star and deal team lead, said: "Receiving this award is another testament to the success of this transaction. First and foremost, I want to congratulate the founders of Envato and its management team, who were absolutely faultless throughout this process and a real pleasure to work with. Huge credit to Shutterstock for their pragmatism and ability to deliver this transaction in record time, particularly as this marked the largest acquisition in their history. This is truly an outstanding deal and I'm proud that it was awarded Cross Border M&A Deal of the Year." For more information on the awards and the deal, please visit our website: https://lnkd.in/ehZW6yzr #Awards #MergersAndAcquisitions #InvestmentBanking #Tech 

🏆 Drake Star won USA Deal of the Year at the recent 16th Annual Americas M&A Atlas Awards by the Global M&A Network, LLC for advising Proviso Capital on its sale of Kerr Consulting is now Cherry Bekaert to Cherry Bekaert, a Parthenon Capital portfolio company. The award further extends Drake Star’s leadership position in the Digital Services M&A space. Sam Levy, Partner at Drake Star and deal team lead, said: "We are really pleased to win this prestigious deal of the year award. It's been a pleasure to work with the Kerr team and help them join forces with Cherry Bekaert and Parthenon. Drake Star’s strong market presence and relationships in the Digital Transformation sector continue to produce extraordinary outcomes for our clients." #Awards #MergersAndAcquisitions #InvestmentBanking #Tech

Discover the pulse of global tech M&A with us in the second edition of our Monthly Drake Take 📧 Each month, we bring you exclusive insights, updates, and expert perspectives from our global team of tech sector specialists. In the first 2025 edition of the Monthly Drake Take, we celebrate our first announced deal for the year, we dive into Gaming with a brand new report, our HR Tech experts venture an outlook for the new year, we recap an exciting event in Berlin which we co-hosted and welcome several new colleagues in New York and Los Angeles. Happy reading!

We are excited to have Drake Star’s CEO, Gregory Bedrosian, attend the FII Institute FII Priority Conference "Invest with Purpose" February 19th - 21st in Miami. Looking forward to joining some of the world’s premier global business leaders, innovators, and investors including Orlando Bravo, Founder & Managing Partner of Thoma Bravo, Safra Catz, CEO of Oracle, Dr. Eric Schmidt, Former CEO & Chairman of Google, KBE, and Jenny Johnson, President & CEO of Franklin Templeton to name just a few. We’ll discuss a wide range of topics including Disruptive Tech & the Exponential Economy; Leadership in a Changing World; Purpose-Driven Capital; and so much more. Additionally, we are pleased to share Drake Star’s insights on the global #Tech M&A landscape and where we believe things are headed in 2025 and beyond. #MergersAndAcquistions #InvestmentBanking