Egypt-based eSports platform, GBarena has announced an agreement to acquire Tunisia-based Galactech, the gaming leader in North Africa in a share swap deal valued at around $15 million. This is GBarena’s second Tunisian acquisition this month and this supports its expansion into the GCC, including Saudi Arabia, with further expansion plans in the Middle Eastern esports industry.
GBarena, established in 2016 by Mustafa Zaza and Bishoy Mesdary, seeks to connect gamers with tournament organizers by means of an online gaming community, where they can handle their tournaments through fully automated processes.
Galactech, created in 2019 by CEO Houcem Maiza and Houssem Zouaghi, has grown to have more than 200,000 active users. With this deal, Maiza will be joining GBArena as co-CEO.
In October 2021, GBarena raised a six-figure pre-Series A funding round, to fuel its expansion plans. This deal marks a milestone transaction for GBarena in anticipation of closing its Series A later this year, with participation from investors in the US, Singapore and the Mena region. It also raised a six-figure seed investment from HIMangel in 2019.
According to GBarena CEO Samer Wagdy about this new venture: “Our goal has always been to provide our users with an unparalleled esports experience, no matter where they’re located in the world. With our acquisition of Galactech, we can now ensure that our users from North Africa will have access to identical features and content they have come to expect from us while providing them with extensive opportunities for growth and development within the esports community.” He also emphasised that this acquisition is one step forward towards achieving the company’s vision, which is to be the leading aggregator in MENA, serving all stakeholders in the industry.
“We’re very happy to be taking a step forward to fulfil the vision we started embarking on the journey with. Under GBArena’s ownership, Galactech will be able to tap into both GBArena’s established user base and resources to strengthen its presence in the region,” said Houcem Maiza.
The GenZ demographic is currently driving the $3.56 billion gaming industry in the Middle East and North Africa, and GBA’s leadership, which is focused on young people, is well-positioned to create the necessary engagement to develop communities throughout the region. With significant investments of over $40 billion in infrastructure development in markets like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, it is expected that there will be significant growth in the gaming ecosystem in Mena in 2023. Advancements in web3 and cloud gaming will soon revolutionize the local gaming experience, and it is projected that there will be 85.76 million gamers in the region by 2025.
