Drake Star Partners said game deals surpassed $49 billion in the first five months of 2021.

Drake Star Partners: Game deals have reached a record $49B in 2021

In the first five months of 2021, the game industry has already set a record for the amount of deals in a year, with more than $49 billion in disclosed deals across 527 investments, acquisitions, and public offerings, according to investment bank Drake Star Partners.

So far, 2021 is off to a flying start for the gaming industry, already becoming a record year in terms of dollar volume. Drake Star Partners said companies announced 142 deals between January and May, with a total value of $21 billion for those deals. In addition, three special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) have raised $4.2 billion. Private game companies have raised $4.2 billion in 314 minority financings from venture capitalists and strategic investors. And the public markets saw $5.4 billion raised in 23 initial public offerings and $14.2 billion raised in secondary offerings and debt financings. Drake Star Partners said 2021 has set a yearly record already, even though it’s only May.

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Dean Takahashi

Dean Takahashi is editorial director for GamesBeat. He has been a tech journalist since 1988, and he has covered games as a beat since 1996. He was lead writer for GamesBeat at VentureBeat from 2008 to April 2025. Prior to that, he wrote for the San Jose Mercury News, the Red Herring, the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, and the Dallas Times-Herald. He is the author of two books, "Opening the Xbox" and "The Xbox 360 Uncloaked." He organizes the annual GamesBeat Next, GamesBeat Summit and GamesBeat Insider Series: Hollywood and Games conferences and is a frequent speaker at gaming and tech events. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.