$350m changes hands as Bigpoint gains two new majority investors

Bigpoint, the German online gaming outfit, has taken a $350m majority share investment from Summit Partners and TA Associates in what’s described as a recapitalization of the company. Representatives from both firms will join Bigpoint’s Board of Directors.

The new capital is said to position the company for “continued strong global growth” and will support Bigpoint’s international expansion, which has already seen it open new offices in the US and Brazil.

The deal also sees original investor Comcast Interactive Capital’s Peacock Equity Fund sell their stake, while founder and co-CEO Heiko Hubertz (yes, the company has two people in the top job) will retain his 30% share in Bigpoint.

On the issue of his ownership stake and the company’s future value, Hubertz comments: “Regarding myself, I kept my share. I see the potential in Bigpoint to exceed a value of one billion dollars and become the top online gaming company in the world.”

That’s certainly big talk from Bigpoint.

Bigpoint operates in the browser-based online gaming space and has more than 185 million registered users. Its titles include Galactica Online, Farmerama and DarkOrbit. The company has over 700 employees and offices in Hamburg, Berlin, San Francisco, São Paolo and Malta. Free to play, it generates 100% of its revenue through virtual in-game sales.