FaZe Clan has gone public

FaZe Clan has gone public.

As it announced it would back in October 2021, the Los Angeles-based esports and entertainment group merged with B. Riley Principal 150 Merger Group, a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), and debuted on the Nasdaq this morning at about $13 per share.

It’s trading under the ticker symbol FAZE.

“We owe so much of our success to you, our fans,” FaZe Clan said in a statement. “We are so grateful for all of you and we’re so excited for what’s to come as we continue to build out what FaZe Clan is. 12 years in, but this is just the start. Thank you for always believing in us.”

Per The Washington Post

, FaZe initially sought a $1 billion valuation for its Nasdaq debut, but ended up being given a preliminary value (post-SPAC merger) of $713 million. This past April, it was reportedly valued at $650 million.

To date, FaZe Clan has raised $40 million from 28 investors, including LeBron James and Guy Oseary. It counts more than 85 members—a mix of esports pros playing games like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Fortnite, and Valorant; content creators like FaZe Rug and FaZe Temperrr; and traditional celebrities like Lil Yachty and Snoop Dogg, who joined in March 2022.

FaZe is perhaps best known for its competitive esports and apparel initiatives, but CEO Lee Trink told WaPo the org is considering expanding into everything from gambling to ghost kitchens to fan clubs and subscriptions.

It’s also looking into partnerships with Web3 companies, potentially to develop FaZe-sponsored video games where players can generate cryptocurrency, and to see if FaZe can find a way to ship content directly to fans, he said.

“Migrating our community to a Web3 community allows us to be directly connected,” Trink said. “It allows us to own the relationship. It allows us to create a bespoke set of engagement around what that relationship is. We can deliver content as we see fit, however we see fit. We can exchange information, we can converse in an environment we see fit and we think serves our community best. We’re enabled to monetize how we see fit, as well.”