SUMMARY
The two parties have not disclosed the size or the financials of the acquisition
Maheshwari will join JetSynthesys as president at the corporate level and focus on the global expansion of Fanory
The Indian creator economy is projected to grow to INR 2,200 Cr by 2025
Digital entertainment platform JetSynthesys has acquired a majority stake in Manish Maheshwari-led startup Fanory. The financials of the deal have not been disclosed so far.
As part of the transaction, former Twitter India head and Fanory cofounder Maheshwari will join JetSynthesys as president at the corporate level to focus on the global expansion of Fanory.
The deal will enable Fanory to leverage the digital entertainment arm of JetSynthesys and allow the former to deploy the latter’s resources to scale the new platform.
“… This deal will exponentially grow the possibilities for creators and their superfans as they now have access to the broader platform and ecosystem relationships of JetSynthesys,” said Maheshwari.
Chiming in, JetSynthesys’ founder and CEO Rajan Navani said, “Last year has seen high growth for us at JetSynthesys, and we are happy to begin 2023 with this transaction. We are looking forward to expanding our horizons in the digital entertainment space… With Manish by our side, we look forward to exploring this new avenue and entrenching ourselves deeper into the digital entertainment realm.”
The acquisition will also enable JetSynthesys to leverage the years of experience that Maheshwari brings with him and his influence in the digital space.
Founded in 2021 by Maheshwari and two of his former colleagues, Fanory operates a content monetisation platform for digital creators. The startup connects creators with fans on the app to leverage and monetise their community of fans. Be it live commerce or a live chat with the celebrities, the platform offers a range of facilities to creators.
The acquisition comes months after Maheshwari unceremoniously exited Invact Metavarsity after a messy tussle with cofounder Tanay Pratap. At the centre of the debate was a purported conflict over the future vision of the company, which eventually saw Maheshwari leave the startup. Besides, the startup was also plagued by issues such as non-commitment of $2.5 Mn by an investor and a full-blown altercation between the duo last year.
The acquisition marks a new chapter for Maheshwari. While Fanory still appears to be in its early stages, there is no clarity on the financials and other key details of the content monetisation startup.
Interestingly, the move to onboard Maheshwari comes months after JetSynthesys appointed former KRAFTON executive Anuj Tandon as its CEO.
In September last year, JetSynthesys acquired Bengaluru-based Web3 product studio Metaphy Labs for an undisclosed amount.
In the celebrity engagement space, Fanory directly competes with small platforms such as Celewish, Tring, and GoNuts, among others.
Driven largely by cheap smartphones and even cheaper internet, the recent past has seen a big boom in the Indian creator economy. According to a report, the Indian creator economy is projected to grow to INR 2,200 Cr by 2025.
