Metafy, an online coaching platform for video gamers, locked up a $25 million Series A at a $125 million post money valuation led by Tiger Global and Seven Seven Six.
The round also includes investments from a slew of angel investors, including Jeff Wilke, former CEO of Amazon Worldwide; co-founder and former CEO of AngelList, Naval Ravikant; and Steven Galanis and Devon Townsend, co-founders of Cameo. Metafy, founded in 2020, had previously raised $8.65 million.
Founder and CEO Josh Fabian said the company had initially sought a valuation of $100 million but received investor interest that pushed that number north. Fabian and his building of Metafy has been featured for the last year as part of Crunchbase News’ “Something Ventured” project.
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The company—which connects gaming coaches and those who want to learn—will use the new cash to double its 26-person staff this year and for product development. The company also will set aside $1 million to start a new events, projects and tournament platform of its own that will be called Sumo.gg.
The platform will allow the gaming community Metafy has helped build and create their own events, which Metafy will sponsor, while also further creating a market where players are seeking to improve their skill, Fabian said.
“This is something we wanted to do for a while,” he said.
Focus on vision
Fabian—whose love of video games and building online communities led him to found Metafy—said with the round now done he can focus on building the company he envisions instead of gearing up for a fund raise.
“I don’t think it’s a good use of my time to be obsessing about what our numbers are every day,” he said. “Now I can focus on the product and the coaches.”
He also appreciated the hands-off approach of lead investor Tiger.
“I’ve been pretty honest about how I feel about venture capital, and generally, it’s not good,” Fabian said with a laugh. Tiger “gives me access to capital and they stay the (expletive) out of my way.”
While Fabian has said that he does not particularly like fundraising or venture capital, he noted he thinks the round is important due to the expertise and skills some of the investors like Seven Seven Six and some of the angel investors bring to the table. Fabian specifically pointed to Wilke, whom he believes can help him further grow into his CEO role.
“I was really particular as to who we brought into the round based on what they bring,” said Fabian, who added he would not be surprised if the company raised again in the next 12 months.
Illustration: Dom Guzman
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