Jang Hyun-guk "Establishing Abu Dhabi Branch Following Dubai... Expanding WEMIX Ecosystem"

Soon 'Mir4' and 'MirM' to Enter China
'Kingdom Hunter', 'Anipang Match' and More to Launch via WEMIX Play in Q4

Jang Hyun-guk, CEO of Wemade, is giving an interview at Wemade headquarters in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province on the 3rd. / Seongnam = Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] Wemade is expanding its blockchain game platform 'Wemix' business by establishing a branch office in the Middle East and also plans to target the Chinese market.

On the 26th, Wemade CEO Jang Hyun-guk stated during the Q3 earnings conference call, "We are pushing forward with establishing a branch office in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE)."

Wemade has been expanding its presence in the Middle East region starting with the establishment of a branch office in Dubai, UAE, in May. Wemade is the first domestic game company to establish a branch office in the UAE.

The Middle East region holds future growth potential in digital assets and blockchain technology. In particular, Dubai has recently shown rapid growth in the gaming industry, and the government has a positive attitude toward blockchain businesses, making it a focal point for not only Wemade but also global IT companies entering the Middle East market.

CEO Jang explained, "We are proceeding in various ways, including entering the local market to conduct business, receiving investments in our company or Wemix, and creating centers in buildings."

He also expressed the company's intention to enter the Chinese market with games based on its Mir intellectual property (IP). He said, "Since a major political event has ended in China, business development there will be more active than before. We have not been idle but have been continuously working. Soon, there will be arrangements regarding the entry of ‘Mir4’ and ‘MirM’ into China. Once finalized, we will communicate with the market."

CEO Jang's global expansion plan is interpreted as an effort to offset Wemade's poor performance. Wemade recorded consolidated sales of 108.3 billion KRW and an operating loss of 28 billion KRW in Q3. The net loss was 88.5 billion KRW. Although sales increased by 71% compared to the same period last year, operating profit and net profit recorded losses for two consecutive quarters following the previous quarter.

In particular, the sharp decline in Wemix platform sales affected the performance. Wemix platform sales decreased by 34% compared to the previous quarter due to a reduction in PlayWallet (formerly Wemix Wallet) DEX transaction volume. However, the operating loss decreased compared to the previous quarter (-34.5 billion KRW).

CEO Jang said, "We are applying a slightly improved tokenomics compared to ‘Mir4’, referencing successful and failed cases of blockchain economy games. The reason why ‘MirM’ did not perform as well as ‘Mir4’ domestically is that the in-game economy was tightened with global release in mind. The gameplay is not inferior to ‘Mir4’, so it is expected to perform better than the global version of ‘Mir4’."

Wemade also plans to accelerate game onboarding on Wemix Play. CEO Jang said, "‘Champion Strike: Crypto Arena’, ‘Kingdom Hunter’, ‘Black Squad: Royal Road’, ‘Anipang Match’, and ‘Anipang Blast’ are scheduled to be released through Wemix Play in Q4. The release of games scheduled for onboarding on Wemix Play in Q4 will accelerate further."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.