Catena Media's venture arm invests in Collectbase, parent of Repackz, to enter 'rips' vertical

Catena Media is widening its business mix with an investment in Collectbase Inc., the parent company of Repackz. The move was made through the company's new venture arm, Catena Growth Ventures, and marks its entry into a vertical known as "rips".

Collectbase describes itself as a digital gaming business built around physical trading cards. Its pack-ripping product lets operators and brands offer their audiences real, graded collectibles under their own name. The investment also covers Collectibles.com, which is presented as a community where consumers can organize, manage, value and share their collections, with the option to trade or sell them.

Under the partnership, Catena Media will introduce Repackz to its network of partner operators and publishers. Catena CEO Manuel Stan said the deal was a further step in diversifying the group's revenue streams. He said Repackz has built a proven product that leading operators are already taking live, and that Catena sees a significant opportunity in bringing it to many more. Through Catena Growth Ventures, he said, the company contributes capital, operator relationships and distribution.

Collectbase co-founder and chief business and strategy officer Dietrich von Behren called pack-ripping one of the most exciting categories in collectibles. He said Repackz was built so operators and brands can quickly and easily offer real, graded collectibles, with sourcing, vaulting and fulfilment handled on their behalf. He added that Catena Media's expertise should help the company grow further.

The deal comes as Catena Media has faced operational setbacks in traditional iGaming affiliate marketing, linked to changing search algorithms and marketing conditions. The investment is seen as a sign that the company is seeking alternative revenue sources. Rips is one such opportunity, though it has so far not reached the scale of prediction markets or sweepstakes online casinos.