CARY – Epic Games has raised another $1 billion in investment capital – its third funding to top the billion dollar mark. The privately held company says it is now valued at $28.7 billion.
Among the investors: Global tech giant Sony, which provided $200 million and is the second such investment the company has made in Epic, which is publisher of the pop culture hit title Fortnite.
The added capital was raised despite the fact Epic is locked in a growing global legal battle with tech giants Apple and Google over antitrust issues. Epic has raised more than $4 billion in capital, much of it coming in the last three years.
Epic raised $1.25 billion in October 2018 and $1.78 billion in August of 2020. In 2012, Tencent invested more than $300 million.
Through a series of recent acquisitions, Epic is expanding its technical and social capabilities as it seeks to build worlds of entertainment and tolls that deliver more life-like special effects. Epic refers to the evolving video game and computer-generated imagery [CGI] as the Metaverse.
“We are grateful to our new and existing investors who support our vision for Epic and the Metaverse. Their investment will help accelerate our work around building connected social experiences in Fortnite, Rocket League and Fall Guys, while empowering game developers and creators with Unreal Engine, Epic Online Services and the Epic Games Store,” said Tim Sweeney, CEO and founder of Epic in a statement.
Added Kenichiro Yoshida, Chairman, President and CEO, Sony Group:
“Epic continues to deliver revolutionary experiences through their array of cutting edge technologies that support creators in gaming and across the digital entertainment industry. We are excited to strengthen our collaboration to bring new entertainment experiences to people around the world. I strongly believe that this aligns with our purpose to fill the world with emotion, through the power of creativity and technology.”
Epic is North carolina’s most valuable so-called unicorn, an emerging company valued at $1 billion or more. And it’s among the richest emerging firms in the US, according to data tracked by private equity news site PitchBook.
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