Multiplayer Gaming Party App Bunch Raises $20 Million

By Annie Baker ● Sep 18, 2020
  • Bunch — a party app for multiplayer games — announced that it has raised $20 million in Series A funding led by General Catalyst

Bunch — a party app for multiplayer games — announced that it has raised $20 million in Series A funding led by General Catalyst. The investors in the round also included many of the top game companies like Electronic Arts, Krafton (PUBG), mixi, Take-Two Interactive Software, Ubisoft, Supercell, Riot Games, Miniclip and COLOPL. And additional investors include LVP, Northzone, Streamlined Ventures, Konvoy Ventures, OneTeam Ventures, Velo Partners, Golden Venture Partners, and Alven Capital Partners. 

In connection with the funding round, Niko Bonatsos from General Catalyst will be joining the Board of Directors. And the company will use its funding to grow its user base and accelerate integrations with popular multiplayer games.

The Bunch party app is considered the easiest way for players to connect with friends over video chat and jump into their favorite games. And developers can also integrate Bunch into their own games to boost engagement by letting players party up with friends and play together. Inspired by ‘LAN parties’ where gamers get together and play video games in the same room, Bunch can deliver the same experience on smartphones and tablets—anytime and anywhere.

The funding round comes on the heels of a major growth spike for Bunch since the beginning of March 2020 — where the app saw rapid adoption all over the world — growing more than 50 times in monthly active users. And alongside the rapid growth in its user base, Bunch saw its audience become more mainstream, expanding from GenZ and slightly more male – to millennial players who are 60% female.

Bunch was co-founded by Selcuk Atli, Jason Liang, and Jordan Howlett. 

KEY QUOTES:

“Multiplayer games are the new social networks. And in these trying times where we are isolated from each other, games are how people are choosing to spend time with friends. Each game is a disconnected island, and at Bunch we are creating one way for players to connect with friends inside and outside of their favorite games. We are super excited to partner with General Catalyst, and importantly, makers of many of the most popular games in the world as our investors.”

— Selcuk Atli, CEO and co-founder of Bunch

“We are big believers in Bunch’s long-term vision to create one place where people gather with friends to play all of their favorite games. And the enthusiastic and unprecedented support Bunch has from the games industry is a testament to the company’s potential to define the next standard in multiplayer games.”

— Niko Bonatsos, managing director at General Catalyst