The company behind the hit mobile game Royal Match, Istanbul-based Dream Games, is expanding its operations to the United Kingdom, where it will open an office in central London. To accelerate its growth, the company has also expanded its leadership team, hiring ex-King marketing executive Richard Hocking as Chief Marketing Officer and ex-Google and King executive Anju Sethi as Chief People Officer.
Founded just three years ago, Dream Games’ first release Royal Match has garnered millions of fans around the world, consistently ranking as a top 3 grossing game in the US and UK. With a valuation of $2.75 billion, Dream Games is one of the world’s most valuable private mobile gaming companies.
“As a company, we have ambitious growth plans, and the opening of our London office marks the next phase in this journey,” said Soner Aydemir, Co-founder and CEO of Dream Games. “Our goal is to expand our international footprint and reach the best talent in the industry to become one of the best entertainment companies in the world. London is Europe’s leading creative hub with a vibrant entertainment community, home to top-tier talent and some of our most important partners, so we’re excited to have a new base here.”
“We’re also delighted to welcome Richard and Anju, both excellent and significant new hires for Dream Games, as we focus on growing our dynamic organization in London and Istanbul. They bring exceptional knowledge and expertise to the team with their significant experience in gaming and technology sectors.”
Richard joins King, where he was the Global Head of Marketing, overseeing the growth and marketing communications teams. Previously, he built and scaled Starcom Mediavest’s Performance Marketing team for 12 years.
“It’s a privilege to be joining Dream Games at such an exciting time.” said Richard Hocking, CMO at Dream Games. “I’ve long had admiration for the quality of Royal Match and how the team has managed to evolve the puzzle genre. Their commitment to creating premium player experiences with enduring appeal speaks to why Royal Match has grown so quickly and become a top mobile game globally.”
Anju joined Dream Games after 20 years of managing people in gaming, technology, and other fields. At companies such as King, Google, Tesco, and others, she is known for driving people strategies and employee experiences.
“I am thrilled to join Dream Games as Chief People Officer on its incredible journey in the world of entertainment,” Anju said.
“At Dream Games, we know that our people are our biggest strength, and we are proud of the creative, purposeful, and trusting environment we created for them. We want to elevate and nurture our talent so they can reach their highest potential. I am inspired by this vision and feel privileged to be able to contribute to it.”
Minister of State at the Department for Culture, Media, and Sport for UK, Julia Lopez, said: “A thriving creative sector is synonymous with the UK. Our success in film, television, music, and gaming, is fuelled by professionals who constantly push the envelope. We are already home to countless leaders in their creative fields, and Dream Games now joins their impressive ranks to further underline the truly global pull of our creative industries.”
With offices in Istanbul and London, Dream Games is one of the world’s leading mobile gaming companies which is also backed by Index Ventures since the Series A round. The VC, which has funded Roblox, King, Supercell, also led Dream Games $255m Series C, last year.
