Japan's Gumi Raises Nearly $26M For Gree Social Games

One of the biggest Japanese publishers on Gree's mobile social games network, Gumi (Yakuza Wars, Pirate Wars), raised ¥2 billion, or $25.7 million, in a new investment round last week. Tecmo Koei Holdings, Jafco, Shinsei Bank, DBJ Capital, Nissei Capital, and Mitsubishi UFJ Capital participated in this series F round. The company secured a total of $7 million in previous rounds from backers like Gree, according to TechCrunch. Gumi intends to devote this new fundings to future acquisitions in Japan and further expanding its staff of 140 employees to develop more social games. The Tokyo-based company intends to expand to South Korea, Singapore, and the United States, too. It expects to sell more than $50 million worth of virtual currency from its eight games this year -- partners like phone carriers and Gree (which owns a 20 percent stake in the firm) will take a cut from that. Gumi currently generates over $6 million in sales each month, and announced last Friday that virtual goods in its mobile social games on Gree managed to make a record total of $1.3 million in a single day. VatorNews reports that Gumi's games have some 10 million registered users and 1 million monthly active players in Japan. It sees an average of $2.50 to $4 in monthly revenues from those players.