Swedish game venture capital firm Behold Ventures has raised $59.2 million to invest in European developers.
As reported by GamesBeat, the firm has invested $21 million in 18 studios since its founding in 2021. Three of these companies were in the United Kingdom, while the rest were situated in the Nordics.
Founder and managing partner Karl Magnus Troedsson said 54% of capital resources were sourced from Europe, with 44% from Asia and 2% from the US.
The majority of investors were strategic at 43%, while 42% were institutional, 10% were family offices, high net worth individuals, and funds-in-funds, with 5% being general partners.
Behold Ventures is targeting over 25 early startups in the Nordic region, focusing on developers, tools, and tech investments.
It has already invested in Dead Astronauts, Seven Stars, and Red Rover. The firm also participated in a $7 million investment of Blue Scarab Entertainment in 2024.
“I think a lot of people are questioning just investing in game developers, because people don’t really feel that the risk level might be high,” said Troedsson.
“It’s not very cool to be in equity right now. We hear that several others are considering project financing as another vehicle for investment.”
He continued: “We haven’t found the next growth engine in our industry. Our bet is that games are the medium of our century. Games have the opportunity to entertain, to educate, to bring people together, to socialise.”
“So our best bet is whatever negativity from the financial side of games we see right now, it’s going to pass. We’re going to find our way. Maybe this is the new norm – then we’re going to get used to it, and we’re going to find our way.”