A great venture exit is not necessarily the biggest headline transaction. The better test is whether it returns meaningful capital while allowing the company to keep building.
Balderton Capital’s exit from Dream Games offers one model. CVC acquired the VC investors’ stakes, creating liquidity for early backers while Dream Games continued building the Royal universe and pursuing its ambition to create world-leading games.
After Balderton received EUVC’s Exit of the Year award, Partner Rob Moffat reflected on the investment and why venture investors should think beyond the traditional IPO path.
Balderton backed Dream Games in 2019 when it was just two months old, with five founders, no employees and, as Rob recalls, around 12 slides.
The conviction came from an exceptional team with product obsession, ambition and competitiveness, including experience building Toon Blast and Toy Blast.
Rob also explains how secondaries and private equity can provide liquidity without requiring founders to sell the company or give up control.
Key takeaways
Exceptional teams can justify very early conviction
Product obsession can be a powerful investment signal
IPOs are not the only route to venture returns
Private equity can create liquidity while founders keep building
Exit structures can align investor returns with founder control
Timestamps
(00:00) Why team quality matters at the earliest stage
(01:00) Backing five founders with zero employees
(02:00) What makes an exceptional founder
(03:00) Dream Games’ obsession with product quality
(04:00) Why “IPO or nothing” is the wrong approach
(05:00) Finding the right liquidity route
(06:00) Preserving founder control in the CVC transaction
(07:00) Why private equity is moving into mobile games and tech
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