Bengaluru-headquartered blockchain-based esports fan engagement startup STAN has raised an equity funding of US$ 2.5 Million in its recently-concluded seed funding round. The round was led by internationally-renowned venture capital firm General Catalyst, alongside other prominent VCs including Better Capital and Eximius Ventures; it also saw participation from multiple superangels such as Aadil Mamujee from Opensea, Nakul Gupta from Coinbase, among others.
The amount raised in this round will be utilized by STAN to provide unparalleled, best-in-class experiences to today’s gaming and esports fans worldwide by launching its flagship platform, as well as to extensively partner with a plethora of top gaming organizations and players across India and other countries in parallel. At the same time, the funds will enable the startup to grow its team rapidly in the near future by onboarding world-class design and tech talent.
STAN has built a uniquely-crafted one-stop platform for the constantly growing pool of esports fans in India and the world to optimally engage, play and grow closer to their idols in the gaming and esports space using digital collectibles and/or mutable NFTs. With STAN, fans will get a chance to collect, play and trade the collectibles/NFTs of their favorite esports players and content creators, via which they will win various perks and rewards. Notably, STAN has already inked IP and/or NFT-related partnerships with several leading Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) creators such as GodLike Esports – Jonathan, Ghatak, Clutchgod, Zgod, among others, as well as FreeFire creators such as Total Gaming, Assasin Army, Desi Gamer, etc. In the near future, STAN will be launching India’s first blockchain-based fantasy for esports.
Speaking on the fundraise, Parth Chadha, Co-Founder, STAN says, “We are happy to announce our maiden seed fundraising round. Having strong partners and investors such as General Catalyst and Better Capital onboard will boost STAN’s aspiration to create superlative fan experiences on the platform and to drive growth for the startup across various levels. Our novel idea and product serving as a rock-solid foundation for STAN, we are attempting not just to enhance overall engagement in the esports fan ecosystem, but also to allow the creators and players to unlock new and innovative ways to interact with their fans, provide collectibles and NFTs and build thriving communities around popular esports titles and games. Driven by our passion to make every esports fan’s dreams come true, the STAN team has already locked significant partnerships with numerous popular esports creators and organizations, and further many more such partnerships on the cards. With a strong future growth trajectory envisaged for STAN, we are currently in discussions to raise more capital in the near future to support our strategic business growth, optimization and scale-up plans”.
Also Read: Matrix Partners, Accel lead USD 7 mn seed round in Nakad
Anand Chandrasekaran, Partner, General Catalyst says, “The two consumer spaces that have been among the fastest growing in India in terms of level of innovation, creator energy and mainstream adoption are esports and Web3/NFTs. This combination has led to a powerful flywheel for product platforms that unlock innovative engagement and business models for esports players and creators. STAN has stood out for us in this space in terms of their inside knowledge of esports, understanding of the market need from both the player and fan angles as well as an incredible team that is building a first-class product experience. General Catalyst (GC) is excited to be investors and lead the seed round in STAN.”
