Netmarble acquires SpinX Games for $2.19 billion to expand into social casino genre

South Korean publisher Netmarble has fully-acquired mobile casino game developer SpinX Games for $2.19 billion. 

Netmarble explained the deal will allow it to expand into a new genre by leveraging SpinX titles like Cash Frenzy, Lotsa Slots, and Jackpot World. 

The social casino market has proved lucrative for SpinX, recorded $423 million in sales during 2020. The company also recently generated $286 million across the first half of the current fiscal year, marking a 46 percent increase on the previous year. 

Netmarble believes SpinX is well positioned to continued that growth, and said the purchase will allow it to "fortify our competitive edge in the global mobile gaming market."

"The social casino genre shows continued global growth, and we are very excited to execute a share purchase agreement with SpinX Games, one of the leading companies in the genre,” said Netmarble chief exec, Seungwon Lee. "Through the acquisition, Netmarble will add the social casino genre alongside its existing main genre of RPG to further strengthen its lineup of casual games."

The news comes a few month after Netmarble acquired a majority stake in WWE: Champions developer Kung Fu Factory through its U.S. subsidiary.