Roblox bags $150m funding, earmarked for international expansion

The absurdly popular Roblox has closed a round of Series F financing, ending up with $150 million (£116m) it intends to put into international expansion at the company.

Main sources of the funding were Greylock Partners and Tiger Global Management – two established sources of funding for projects around the world – as well as financial input from existing investors like Altos Ventures, Index Ventures, and Meritech Capital Partners.

With more than 70 million active users each month on Roblox, the game/platform/creative tool is one of the most popular things out there for kids and teens. Four million ‘young creators’ have built over 40 million experiences since Roblox’s inception – games, tools, whatever you can think of, they’ve made it in the game. And in 2018 these creators are on course to earn more than $70 million (£54m) from things published on the platform.

With the funding secured, Roblox intends to focus on international expansion, expanding its global network and increasing support for elements like non-English languages and foreign currencies.

“Roblox’s thriving community and engagement reminds me of the early days of Facebook and LinkedIn. This is a platform that has reshaped the way kids and teens play with friends, through millions of user-created immersive experiences on Roblox,” said David Sze of Greylock Partners, “David Baszucki and the team at Roblox have only scratched the surface of their part in the future of interactive entertainment. We are excited to partner with them as they expand their tools and grow their team to continue to empower tomorrow’s creators around the world through imaginative play.”

“Roblox’s mission is to power the imagination of people around the world,” Baszucki, CEO and co-founder of Roblox, added, “This funding will allow us to scale the company as we serve all the creative individuals across the globe who come to our platform.”