Gaming
Former Findex Financial Adviser joins Balthazar
Esteemed financial adviser Terry Vogiatzis has joined NFT gaming platform Balthazar, as Chief Investment Officer, leading the organisation’s investment strategy.
Vogiatzis was formerly one of the youngest Associate Partners at investment management firm Findex, responsible for $100 million in funds under management. His passion for building wealth through innovative strategies led him to explore, and now join, the cryptocurrency industry.
“I’m excited to apply learnings and principles of traditional finance and markets to the cryptocurrency space, and help build a cryptocurrency and DAO (Decentralised Autonomous Organisation) from the ground-up,” said Vogiatzis.
“I’m also excited to manage Balthazar’s internal treasury, implementing cryptocurrency strategies which are already proving successful.”
Built for the NFT gaming community
Balthazar’s mission is to empower the biggest gaming community to create a self-sustaining, wealth-building ecosystem. Through its scholarship program, Balthazar invests in NFT gaming assets for players to use to earn in-game reward tokens. The yields from these NFTs are shared between Balthazar and the players – known as “scholars”, or as Balthazar terms its “Wizards”.
Balthazar is innovating further than a traditional gaming guild, developing technology to gain a competitive advantage. This includes a platform for NFT asset holders to lend their NFTs to Balthazar and earn a yield, and a launchpad for gaming developers to access the Balthazar community.
Early success
Following its launch in September 2021, Balthazar has seen rapid growth with over 70,000 people in its Discord community and over 35,000 people on its waitlist for its scholarship program.
Last month, Balthazar closed its first token sale of US$3 million led by Animoca Brands. It is soon to close a Private Token Sale round of US$8 million with a valuation of US$150 million.
“We are thrilled to have Terry on board,” said John Stefanidis, Balthazar CEO. “With his experience and background in traditional finance, coupled with a deep understanding of the cryptocurrency market, Terry brings a unique and highly valuable strength to Balthazar.”
Following Terry’s appointment, Balthazar recorded a 90% return (US$300,000 profit) in one month from a combination of investing in Pegaxy governance tokens (PGX) and in-game rewards (yields). Pegaxy is a blockchain-based digital horse racing game.
The explosive NFT gaming space
The play-to-earn market has seen explosive growth over the past year. In fact, the most popular NFT game, Axie Infinity, generated over US$1.3 billion in revenue, more than any other dapp/blockchain behind ethereum, according to Token Terminal.
Other gaming guilds such as Yield Guild Games, Merit Circle and Crypto Gaming United, all hold fully diluted valuations of more than US$2 billion.
Strength in Balthazar’s financial expertise
In his new role, Vogiatzis will be responsible for developing Balthazar’s internal investment strategy and tokenomics.
“Launching a cryptocurrency requires far more thought than one may think, especially when trying to parallel fundamentals to traditional investments,” said Vogiatzis. “For example, the most difficult thing about monetising on fully diluted valuations is building liquidity and market depth, as the majority of tokens adding to this valuation have not yet vested. Various strategies need to be considered when incentivising liquidity such as offering “staking rewards” for investors that provide liquidity to the market, and tying this into the gradual vesting of investor tokens.”
Vogiatzis will also conduct regular virtual workshops, teaching the Balthazar community about financial literacy.
“I’m humbled to have the opportunity to make a difference in our community by helping people learn not just about the benefits of cryptocurrency strategies but also the risks involved and the importance of diversifying into other asset classes,” said Vogiatzis. “I believe NFT gaming will make a positive impact for many people, particularly in developing countries.”
Balthazar’s management team includes six other highly accomplished executives:
John Stefanidis, CEO: one of Australia’s leading digital marketing and ecommerce experts, he has developed and scaled several businesses including digital marketing agency, Covert.
Hairul Lutfi, CFO: Over 15 years experience in accounting and compliance, specialising in fintech and fast growth startups.
Bijan Abdollahi, COO: Skills and qualifications in engineering, business, and complex project development.
Kristian Bortnik, CTO: Deep information architecture (IA) and tech strategy skills, having managed large teams across multinational clients.
Peter Nay, CMO: Experienced in brand building, marketing and scaling e-commerce brands.
Michelle Hutchison, CCO: Over 16 years experience in international media and communications, including digital marketing, cryptocurrency compliance and fintech.
Nicholas Korsgård, CGO: Game Strategy E-Sports coaching phenomenon. Professional gamer at the highest level for both LoL and Starcraft.
Gaming
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Asia
Mythpat, GamerFleet, Piyush Joshi Gaming: India’s popular Minecraft Players Gear Up for the Ultimate Battle in Creators Rumble
Get ready to dive into an electrifying, one-of-a-kind gaming spectacle as India’s most talented gamers face off in the much-anticipated Minecraft tournament titled Creators Rumble, an initiative by OP Gaming, a subsidiary of OpraahFx. This event is set to bring together India’s top Minecraft creators, who will challenge each other and display their mastery over the game in a thrilling competition spanning three rounds which includes Parkour, MLG and PvP.
This event marks the first time that India’s top Minecraft influencers and gaming creators unite in an official tournament format, bringing fans and players alike a whole new level of excitement.
Divided into six teams of four members, they will face off across action-packed Minecraft rounds designed to test every skill—from strategy and creativity to adaptability and teamwork.
Mythpat aka Mithilesh Patankar, one of India’s leading Youtuber and gaming influencers, shared his excitement saying, “Creators Rumble will be a chance to bring the Minecraft gaming community closer, strengthening bonds among creators and igniting excitement for both fans and gamers. India has a huge Minecraft fanbase, and this tournament will introduce even more gamers to the fun of Minecraft.”
The inaugural edition of Creators Rumble will tap into Minecraft’s worldwide popularity, which has grown steadily since its release. In October 2023, Mojang Studios, the game’s developer, revealed it has sold over 300 million copies, making Minecraft the best-selling video game in history. Players of all ages continue to be captivated by its open-ended gameplay and limitless creative potential, where they can build worlds and structures limited only by their imagination.
Anticipating the prospects Mansi Gupta, Chief Business Officer at OpraahFx, emphasized on the industry impact saying, “India’s gaming landscape is thriving, and we believe that the nation has the potential to emerge as one of the world’s biggest pools of gaming talent. The Creators Rumble is a platform for growth, not only for seasoned players but for the entire creator economy. We’re here to support these creators as they captivate audiences with their talents in Minecraft.”
The Creator’s Rumble will see iconic players Mythpat (Mithilesh Patankar) and Gamerfleet (Anshu Bisht) showcasing some exhilarating gaming experience joined by popular gaming creators, Piyush Joshi Gaming (younger brother of popular Indian YouTuber, Sourav Joshi), AndreoBee (Naveen Yadav), MC Addon (Dipanshu Prajapati), PSD1 (Prathamesh), Harshita (Harshita Shukla), ShadowShooter (Pankaj Kumar Sahoo), I.M.Kopi (Bibek Jung Kunwar), Proboiz (Paresh Solanki), Mr Lapis (Jitender Kumar), GameBeat (Nitin Tyagi), Risible Twins (Kartik and Kunal), Yug Playz (Yug Thakkar), Agnit Plays (Vinit Aggarwal), GamerJatin (Jatin Makhija), Spunky Insaan (Harshit Nema), Pahadi Gaming (Lokesh Karakoti), DevXD (Pankaj Dev), Ro9nie (Rohan Chhabra), Sidh4rth (Siddharth), CassalFx (Shrey Patel) and Dattrax Gaming (Harvest Dewangan).
With this monumental event, OP Gaming aims to further solidify India’s role in the global gaming landscape and showcase the extraordinary creativity and camaraderie of the Minecraft community.
The tournament is scheduled to take place on November 22 (Friday) and will be streamed live on the OP Gaming YouTube channel. Six teams – Team Redstone, Team Gold, Team Emeralds, Team Shulker, Team Amethyst, and Team Diamonds, will compete in a series of thrilling challenges, vying for the prestigious title and showcasing the finest Minecraft talent in India.
Gaming
THE BATTLE OF POLYTOPIA RELEASES NEW AQUARION SPECIAL SKIN IN LATEST UPDATE
Midjiwan, the award-winning independent studio behind The Battle of Polytopia has today released a new Aquarion Special Skin, additional language options and balance updates to the recently reworked Aquarion tribe. Players will dive deep into the Ritiki Marshlands encountering a lost Aquarion outpost with the new skin known as “The Forgotten”.
Long ago, when the Aquarion Empire vanished beneath the waves. One remote outpost in the swampy atolls lost all contact, leading its inhabitants to believe they were the last of their kind. This forgotten tribe evolved in isolation, adapting to the marshy landscapes with squid-like appendages and unique abilities to command the swamp and its creatures.
Using the unique abilities of “The Forgotten”, players can build on water, summon giant squids, create speed enhancing bubbles, ride crocodiles, tame toads, and traverse their marshy terrains with ease.
In addition, the latest update to the game now offers expanded language options: Hindi, Indonesian, Malay, Polish, Thai, Turkish & Vietnamese.
Christian Lövstedt, CEO of The Battle of Polytopia, commented: “I feel that this skin is one of the best we’ve created and has quickly become my personal favourite. Additionally, we have added Bubble Tech to the Aquarion Waterways, making that tribe even greater. With expanded language options and new gameplay mechanics, we’re inviting players to dive into the rich lore and strategy that make the Battle of Polytopia truly special.”
To celebrate the launch of the new update, Midjiwan hosted an exclusive livestream event, offering fans a unique look behind the scenes, live gameplay, and discussions with the development team – the livestream is available to watch now: The Forgotten livestrea m by Midjiwan.
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