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Epic closes $1bn funding round, Fortnite firm worth $28.7bn

Date Type Companies involved Size
April 14th, 2021 investment Epic Games $1,000m
Epic closes $1bn funding round, Fortnite firm worth $28.7bn

Fortnite maker Epic Games is now apparently worth $28.7 billion as it closes another $1 billion round of funding.

The firm announced the investment in a post on its website, saying that $200 million of that $1 billion figure had come from PlayStation maker Sony, who were one of many companies to chip into this latest funding round. That $28.7 billion valuation is $11.4 billion – a 65.9 per cent increase – on the $17.3 billion that Epic was reportedly worth in August 2020.

This is the second time that Sony has backed Epic Games, following a $250 million investment last summer.

This money is apparently being used to bolster Epic, as well as help it create the "metaverse," which is the latest tech buzzword for online worlds.

“We are grateful to our new and existing investors who support our vision for Epic and the metaverse," Epic CEO and founder Tim Sweeney (pictured) said.

"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."

Sony Group Corporation chair, president and CEO Kenichiro Yoshida added: “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 recently purchased Fall Guys maker Tonic Games Group, though no figure was placed on the deal. In its legal battle with Apple, it has emerged that the firm is set to make almost $600 million in losses on the Epic Games Store by the end of 2021, but the company reckons this will be profitable by 2023.


PCGamesInsider Contributing Editor

Alex Calvin is a freelance journalist who writes about the business of games. He started out at UK trade paper MCV in 2013 and left as deputy editor over three years later. In June 2017, he joined Steel Media as the editor for new site PCGamesInsider.biz. In October 2019 he left this full-time position at the company but still contributes to the site on a daily basis. He has also written for GamesIndustry.biz, VGC, Games London, The Observer/Guardian and Esquire UK.