Venatus has received investment from private equity investors, Livingbridge. Venatus is an ad tech platform that targets gaming and entertainment audiences. It was founded in 2010, and this is its first round of investment.
Venatus has its headquarters in London, with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Sydney, and Seoul. The company says the investment from Livingbridge will enable them to grow in the US as well as in new markets.
“We are excited to be joining forces with Livingbridge, a partner with a strong record helping UK businesses to grow,” said CEO Rob Gay.
“We look forward to working with the team to continue scaling our business internationally while developing our proprietary technology and product offering,” he added.
CEO Rob Gay and COO Matt Cannon founded Venatus, which has exclusively represented direct and programmatic sales for over 250 publishers, including companies like EA, Rovio, and OP.GG. The company has also created creative campaigns for brands like Unilever, Hasbro and the BBC.
The market for Venatus is currently estimated to be around £1 billion.
This is the latest in a series of investments Livingbridge has made in the media and marketing sector in the UK. Last month it took a majority stake in social media content production company Jungle Creations. In 2019, the private investment firm also bought a 40 percent stake in digital marketing agency Brainlabs.
Dave Kirby, partner at Livingbridge said that his company were pleased to be partnering with a company working in the expanding gaming advertising space.
“We are delighted to be partnering with Venatus, a well-differentiated business which offers a winning proposition for both publishers and advertisers/agencies looking to reach a gaming audience,” said Kirby. “The founders and current management team have done a fantastic job in creating a unique business with a strong reputation and we look forward to helping them fulfil the company’s potential.”
