Jordan-based mobile game publisher Tamatem Games has announced that it has raised $11 million in a Series B funding round led by Krafton (formerly Bluehole), the South Korean video game developer behind the popular battle royale game PUBG.
With participation from Venture Souq, Endeavor Catalyst, and other existing investors, the round has increased Tamatem’s funding by over $17 million since its inception in 2013.
Tamatem, which means tomato, was founded when Jordanian entrepreneur Hussam Hammo recognized the demand for Arabic content, as the market remained empty with less than 1% of Arabic content available online.
Hammo, CEO and founder of Tamatem Games, commented;
“People want to be entertained with content they can relate to. There were almost zero mobile gaming companies that published mobile games that fit the language and culture of the Arabic-speaking market and demand was growing day by day.”
With more than 40 games released to date and approximately 3.5 million daily active users in its best games, Tamatem has reached more than 120 million downloads in all its games. Hammo added the following words;
“At the moment we’ve 75 employees and we’re planning on doubling in size in the next six months. Our focus is to add more strategy and card games to the platform as they are in high demand in our market.”
According to a report published by Orient Planet Research in June 2021, the market size of MENA, where Tamatem operates, is expected to reach $4.4 billion in 2022. Saudi Arabia was ranked 19th in gaming revenue with $837 million in 2020, while the UAE was ranked 35th.
Tamatem will further collaborate with the South Korean company to promote more of its games in the Arabic-speaking market. The company will work with Krafton to help grow PUBG: New State in the MENA region.
Krafton’s investment in Tamatem will likely not be the last in the MENA region. Anuj Tandon, Head of Corporate Development at KRAFTON (India and MENA), said in a statement;
“This is just the beginning of our many investments in this region”
Krafton, which owns leading games including PUBG: Battlegrounds, PUBG: New State, The Callisto Protocol, TERA, and ELYON, stated that they are willing to take a more significant share in the industry.
With new capital from Krafton and other investors, Tamatem is expanding its presence in the region by increasing the number of offices in Saudi Arabia, where 70% of its users are based, and hiring more of its local Saudi workforce.
Tamatem’s plans to expand to other countries in the region will also begin with this investment. The company, which has employees in Jordan, the USA, India, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Germany, and Bulgaria, opened offices in Saudi Arabia and Egypt last year.
The Amman-based company will set up a future gaming academy and use some of the new capital to train its workforce in the market.