Forgame Announces 2018 Annual Results
Overall Performance Maintains Steady, Exploring New Opportunities in E-sports
Overall Performance Maintains Steady, Exploring New Opportunities in E-sports
Publish Date:2019-03-27 source:Forgame
(Hong Kong, 27 March 2019) – Forgame Holdings Limited ("Forgame" or the "Group") (stock code: 484), a leading company of fintech and games in China, announced its annual results for the year ended 31 December 2018. Under the pressure of strong supervision in 2018, the Group kept compliant with rule and regulations and maintained steady overall operating conditions. In the year of 2018, and the Group recognized adjusted EBITDA of approximately RMB55.5 million.
Mr. Dongfeng Wang, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Forgame, said, “Despite the turbulent fintech industry in the past year, we have been steadily adapting to the harsh market environment, successfully surviving in the obscurity and smoothing through the difficulties. Despite the various difficulties that we have encountered, our team has kept our morale high. Our management is confident about the future and will quickly respond if we identify any opportunities in the market.”
2018 was a difficult year for the Group’s fintech business as well as the entire domestic fintech industry. Regulators issued a number of guidelines during the year for the domestic fintech industry which increased regulatory requirements for fintech companies. Faced with an increasingly difficult market environment, the Group’s management and employees acted in unison, rapidly made adjustments to the business and eventually navigated through this critical time.
Turning to game business, almost three years have passed since the Group’s flagship game “Liberators” was launched in overseas markets in March 2016. As at the end of 2018, the game continues to generate steady monthly gross billings of more than RMB3.0 million without any large-scale promotional campaign since the first quarter of 2017. Since the Group started the promotional campaign, “Liberators” has generated a net income of over RMB41.0 million after deducting content cost, distribution cost and promotional expenses. This success reflects Forgame’s deep understanding of overseas gamers and ability to launch overseas advertising campaigns.
Forgame’s mission has always been to “bring joy to our users”. With this mission in mind, Forgame launched a number of popular games since its establishment in 2009. With the help of China’s internet development and the socialization in the game industry, the industry is evolving and entering an approaching of gaming and sports, or e-sports. E-sports, which is sporting competition using electronic equipment, has developed rapidly since it was acknowledged as No.78 formal sports program by the General Administration of Sport of China in 2008. According to an independent third-party research report, the size of the e-sports market reached RMB77 billion in 2017 and is expected to exceed RMB88 billion in 2018. The annual growth rate for e-sports users has been more than 20% for the past three years and the total number of e-sports users is expected to reach 430 million in 2018. Looking forward, e-sports will be a new growth momentum for the sports industry with the new generation turning into the main consumer group. A new style of entertainment is forming in the society. The new form of entertainment characterised by e-sports and virtual reality (“VR”) is becoming more dominant commercially.
In order to prepare for the challenges ahead, the Group acquired approximately 19.99% equity interest in Tianjin LMDJ Internet Technology Co., Ltd., one of China’s most well-known e-sports venue brands, at the beginning of 2019. The acquisition signifies the commencement of the Group’s strategy to upgrade its game business. In the future, the Group will continue to closely monitor new technologies for game and fintech including VR and blockchain. In order to stay one step ahead of the industry, the Group will invest in the future at the right time to actively upgrade its business to adapt to the increasingly fierce competition in the internet market.
Mr. Dongfeng Wang concluded, “Although the overall fintech market environment in China is still full of challenges, our management and every employee will continue to strive to keep our business compliant with rules and regulations, and endeavor to ensure smooth business operation. In the year of 2019, we will further upgrade our game business through exploring more potential areas such as e-sports and VR. In 2019, leveraging our own advantages, we believe that we will dedicate ourselves to our business transformation and innovation through exploring new opportunities for development, in order to achieve the goal of creating sustainable long-term value for our shareholders.”
About Forgame Holdings Limited (stock code: 484)
Established in 2009 and listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on 3 October 2013, Forgame Holdings Limited is a leading company of fintech and games in China, and is now building a comprehensive ecosystem for financial services and entertainment, with the aim of becoming one of the most influential technology companies in China. In December 2016, the Group obtained a license from the government to carry out internet microlending business in the PRC. In January 2019, the Group started to explore the e-sports industry. In the future, Group is expected to further strengthen its business presence and provide users with great product experience under the principles of “simple happiness, inclusive finance”.
Mr. Dongfeng Wang, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Forgame, said, “Despite the turbulent fintech industry in the past year, we have been steadily adapting to the harsh market environment, successfully surviving in the obscurity and smoothing through the difficulties. Despite the various difficulties that we have encountered, our team has kept our morale high. Our management is confident about the future and will quickly respond if we identify any opportunities in the market.”
2018 was a difficult year for the Group’s fintech business as well as the entire domestic fintech industry. Regulators issued a number of guidelines during the year for the domestic fintech industry which increased regulatory requirements for fintech companies. Faced with an increasingly difficult market environment, the Group’s management and employees acted in unison, rapidly made adjustments to the business and eventually navigated through this critical time.
Turning to game business, almost three years have passed since the Group’s flagship game “Liberators” was launched in overseas markets in March 2016. As at the end of 2018, the game continues to generate steady monthly gross billings of more than RMB3.0 million without any large-scale promotional campaign since the first quarter of 2017. Since the Group started the promotional campaign, “Liberators” has generated a net income of over RMB41.0 million after deducting content cost, distribution cost and promotional expenses. This success reflects Forgame’s deep understanding of overseas gamers and ability to launch overseas advertising campaigns.
Forgame’s mission has always been to “bring joy to our users”. With this mission in mind, Forgame launched a number of popular games since its establishment in 2009. With the help of China’s internet development and the socialization in the game industry, the industry is evolving and entering an approaching of gaming and sports, or e-sports. E-sports, which is sporting competition using electronic equipment, has developed rapidly since it was acknowledged as No.78 formal sports program by the General Administration of Sport of China in 2008. According to an independent third-party research report, the size of the e-sports market reached RMB77 billion in 2017 and is expected to exceed RMB88 billion in 2018. The annual growth rate for e-sports users has been more than 20% for the past three years and the total number of e-sports users is expected to reach 430 million in 2018. Looking forward, e-sports will be a new growth momentum for the sports industry with the new generation turning into the main consumer group. A new style of entertainment is forming in the society. The new form of entertainment characterised by e-sports and virtual reality (“VR”) is becoming more dominant commercially.
In order to prepare for the challenges ahead, the Group acquired approximately 19.99% equity interest in Tianjin LMDJ Internet Technology Co., Ltd., one of China’s most well-known e-sports venue brands, at the beginning of 2019. The acquisition signifies the commencement of the Group’s strategy to upgrade its game business. In the future, the Group will continue to closely monitor new technologies for game and fintech including VR and blockchain. In order to stay one step ahead of the industry, the Group will invest in the future at the right time to actively upgrade its business to adapt to the increasingly fierce competition in the internet market.
Mr. Dongfeng Wang concluded, “Although the overall fintech market environment in China is still full of challenges, our management and every employee will continue to strive to keep our business compliant with rules and regulations, and endeavor to ensure smooth business operation. In the year of 2019, we will further upgrade our game business through exploring more potential areas such as e-sports and VR. In 2019, leveraging our own advantages, we believe that we will dedicate ourselves to our business transformation and innovation through exploring new opportunities for development, in order to achieve the goal of creating sustainable long-term value for our shareholders.”
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About Forgame Holdings Limited (stock code: 484)
Established in 2009 and listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on 3 October 2013, Forgame Holdings Limited is a leading company of fintech and games in China, and is now building a comprehensive ecosystem for financial services and entertainment, with the aim of becoming one of the most influential technology companies in China. In December 2016, the Group obtained a license from the government to carry out internet microlending business in the PRC. In January 2019, the Group started to explore the e-sports industry. In the future, Group is expected to further strengthen its business presence and provide users with great product experience under the principles of “simple happiness, inclusive finance”.