Unikrn

Unikrn Inc.
Type of site
 Private company
Founded 2014
Headquarters Seattle, United States
Area served Worldwide
Founder(s) Rahul Sood, Karl Flores
Industry Online gambling
Services Online Esports betting & gaming
Website https://unikrn.com

Unikrn Inc. (styled as "Unikrn") is an esports betting company, based in Las Vegas, Nevada with offices in Seattle USA, Sydney Australia and Berlin, Germany.[1]

Overview

Founded in November 2014, Unikrn primarily offers real money [2] and token-based wagering on competitive video game tournaments, otherwise known as esports.[3] Unikrn creates betting markets on esports (organized video game competitions) matches akin to traditional betting.

Unikrn is licensed to provide real-money betting on esports in the UK[4] and Australia.[5]

Origins and Development

The company was founded by Rahul Sood and Karl Flores in November 2014, after Sood finished his role as General Manager at Microsoft Ventures.[6]

Unikrn raised $10 million[7] [8] in funding from several high-profile investors, including Mark Cuban, Ashton Kutcher[9], Binary Capital[10], and Tabcorp[11], its main partner for betting operations[12], as well as Elisabeth Murdoch and Shari Redstone. It also has partnerships with HP and Razer.[2]

In 2016, Unikrn became an investor in BIG (Berlin International Gaming),[13] a professional Counter-Strike: Global Offensive team. It has also fielded an all-female CS:GO team, Team Unikrn.[14] Unikrn also has an investment in MAINGEAR,[15] a high-end PC manufacturer.

In the second quarter of 2017, Unikrn acquired LEET,[16] an esports startup based in Las Vegas, Nevada, who specialize in integrating esports into land-based casinos. Unikrn also owns an Indian-based esports company, DotaProHub.[17]

Unikrn endorse the launch of The Esports Integrity Coalition (ESIC), along with Betway, ESL and Dreamhack, which aims to curb corruption and enforce ethical standards in the esports industry.[18]

In December 2017, Unikrn announced a partnership with MGM Resorts International to host events in Las Vegas.[19]

UnikoinGold

In 2017, the company has created UnikoinGold, an Ethereum-based cryptocurrency coin that will be used for betting on their platform. The initial coin offering will also provide funding for the company.[20]

References

  1. ↑ "Why An Ex-Microsoft Exec Chose Google Apps Over Microsoft's Office 365 For His Startup". Business Insider. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
  2. 1 2 "There's an easy way to bet on competitive video games". Engadget. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
  3. ↑ "Gambling Comes to E-Sports with Unikrn". The New York Times. Retrieved 11 May 2017.
  4. ↑ "Account details". UK Gambling Commission. 4 Aug 2017.
  5. ↑ Morris, Chris. "Mark Cuban invests in eSports betting company Unikrn". Fortune. Retrieved 2017-08-04.
  6. ↑ Burns, Matt. "VoodooPC Founder And Microsoft Ventures General Manager Rahul Sood Is Leaving Microsoft To Start Another Company". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2017-09-19.
  7. ↑ "Unikrn Picks Up $7M To Bring Betting To Esports". TechCrunch. Retrieved 11 May 2017.
  8. ↑ "Unikrn Closes Series A with Binary Capital and All-Star Group of Investors to Further Global Expansion". Businesswire. Retrieved 11 May 2017.
  9. ↑ "Ashton Kutcher Joins Mark Cuban in Backing E-Sports Company Unikrn". Inc.com. 2015-09-01. Retrieved 2017-09-19.
  10. ↑ Constine, Josh. "Binary Capital backs runaway trains with $175 million new fund". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2017-09-19.
  11. ↑ "Tabcorp puts some skin in the game". Retrieved 2017-09-19.
  12. ↑ "Fantasy eSports By the Numbers: You Won't Believe How Much Money's On the Line". Playboy. 2015-11-01. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
  13. ↑ "eSports Betting Company Unikrn Invests In German CS:GO Team BIG". SportTechie. Retrieved 11 May 2017.
  14. ↑ "Unikrn fields all-woman team to compete in e-sport matches". The Seattle Times. 2015-11-19. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
  15. ↑ "Maingear, Unikrn Bet on PC Gaming's Future". PCMag. Retrieved 11 May 2017.
  16. ↑ "Unikrn to acquire casino focused esports company LEET". Esports Insider. Retrieved 11 May 2017.
  17. ↑ "Esports betting hub Unikrn buys statistics company DotaProHub | GamesBeat". venturebeat.com. Retrieved 2017-09-19.
  18. ↑ Kamen, Matt. "Esports Integrity Coalition aims to clean up competitive gaming". WIRED UK. Retrieved 2017-07-13.
  19. ↑ "Esports Betting Site Unikrn Partnering With MGM In Las Vegas". Esports Betting Report. 2017-12-18. Retrieved 2017-12-19.
  20. ↑ Shen, Lucinda. "This Is the Cryptocurrency Mark Cuban Is Backing". Fortune. Retrieved 2017-07-12.
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