The London-based games technology business Playstack, a subsidiary of TruFin (TRU ), has acquired Magic Fuel Games Inc, a United States-based remote games development studio.
Magic Fuel was founded in 2015 and has since built a portfolio of compelling IP that leverages the teams’ years of experience in the simulation and city build games genre. In the year to 31 December 2021, it made a loss before tax of $2.1m and to date, it holds $0.2m in net assets.
TruFin, the AIM-listed UK-based operating company focused on growing fintech and banking businesses, outlined this morning that the total consideration for the acquisition is US$3m in cash, of which $1.5m is payable immediately and $1.5m is payable in twelve months’ time.
Simultaneous with the acquisition, Playstack has signed a significant contract with a global technology platform which Magic Fuel will be instrumental in delivering. As a result, the acquisition is expected to be earnings neutral to TruFin in 2022 and accretive from 2023.
TruFin told investors today that the proposed acquisition will add a breadth of experience game development talent to Playstack’s roster, including the appointment of Magic Fuel’s Chief Executive Officer, Kevin Shrapnell, as Playstack’s Chief Operating Officer.
Harvey Elliott, CEO of Playstack, commented: “I have a great deal of respect for Kevin and his leadership team having worked with them at Electronic Arts. They will significantly strengthen the depth of our team and add further exciting IP to Playstack’s portfolio which we believe we can help to leverage through our existing publishing channels and relationships.”
Kevin Shrapnell, CEO of Magic Fuel, said: “We have long admired the way in which Playstack approaches games publishing and are thrilled to become part of this exciting organisation.
He added: “Magic Fuel and Playstack have a shared belief in the untapped potential that simulation-based games present, and we are delighted to be able to add our passion and expertise for this genre to that of the Playstack team.”
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Earlier this year, TruFin confirmed that it had raised £8 million to fund the growth of its subsidiaries, Satago and
Playstack, and to help fund the group through to profitability.
Both Satago and Lloyds are now working towards finalising a commercial agreement in the coming months. Earlier in
March 2022, the Lloyds Banking Group completed an investment of £5 million of new equity capital into Satago at a pre-money valuation of £20 million.
The Board of TruFin considers the latter agreement as “a landmark transaction,” with Satago securing one of the largest banks in the UK as a strategic, commercial and financial partner.
The landmark deal is expected to have a material positive impact on Satago’s revenues to the point where it will be transformational for TruFin as a whole. Alongside this, there are still three other businesses under TruFin’s umbrella that are also improving in 2022 and beyond.
Within games publishing, TruFin’s Playstack subsidiary, which is expanding the impact of the Mortal Shell IP, has secured publishing rights for three new games to be released within the next 12 months, each with the expectation of high user appeal and strong marketability.
It is also working to expand its internal games development capability via recruitment or acquisition so it can increase its core games portfolio and increase reach in all key markets.
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