Fortnite creator Epic Games is reportedly raising fresh funds at a valuation of more than $15 billion

• Epic Games, the developer of Fortnite, has reportedly held talks to raise fresh funds valuing it above its last valuation of $15 billion.
• According to anonymous sources cited by Bloomberg, Epic has hired a specialist financial adviser to oversee the fundraise, which it hopes will total between $500 million and $1 billion.
• As well as developing bestselling games like 'Fortnite' and 'Gears of War', Epic also owns Houseparty – the video chat and casual games app that's gained a glut of new users during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The app reported gaining 50 million new users within a 30-day period across March and April.
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Epic Games, the developer of "Fortnite," has reportedly held talks to raise fresh funds valuing it above its last valuation of $15 billion.

According to anonymous sources cited by Bloomberg, Epic has hired a specialist financial adviser to oversee the fundraise, which it hopes will total between $500 million and $1 billion.

As well as developing bestselling games like "Fortnite" and "Gears of War," a big chunk of Epic's value lies in what it can offer other game developers.

Epic helps hundreds of third-party video games run using its proprietary game engine, "Unreal."

Beyond the traditional video games sector, Epic also owns Houseparty – the video chat and casual games app that's gained a glut of new users during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Houseparty reported a gain of 50 million new users within a 30-day period across March and April, with the rate of new signups 70 times higher than usual in some markets.

On Tuesday, Epic also announced that Fortnite will be available to download through Google's Play Store for the first time, though the firm made clear it was doing so reluctantly and on the grounds that "Google puts software downloadable outside of Google Play at a disadvantage."