Esports pioneer Mineski bets on SEA gaming boom

“This is why esports is inclusive. It’s not about brawn. Anyone can play. This is why esports is the future.”

Ronald Robins, founder and CEO of esports pioneer Mineski Global, proclaimed this while awarding Coins.ph Head of Operations Thea Santos on stage.

Making esports more mainstream

Santos, who said that she was not really a gamer, was crowned champion in a friendly Tekken 7 mini-tournament. Mineski held the tournament during the inauguration of its new global corporate headquarters in San Juan, Metro Manila, the Philippines.

The Tekken 7 mini-tournament offered a glimpse of the state-of-the-art facilities of the new Mineski global HQ, which is its largest facility to date.

Filipino champion gamer Robins founded Mineski in the Philippines in 2004. Over the years, it has grown into an esports powerhouse across the Asia. Mineski has a presence in Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia. It also has representatives in Vietnam, Hong Kong/Macau, Taiwan, Myanmar, Cambodia, and India. The global HQ will be the template for its network of offices across the region, which will be upgraded with similar facilities.

The inauguration of the Mineski global HQ coincided with the historic introduction of esports as a medal sport for the first time in the 30th Southeast Asian Games. San Juan also hosted the esports tournament, with Mineski among the existing organizers in the competitions.

“Just as esports is growing, so will Mineski grow in the city of San Juan,” San Juan Mayor Francis Zamora said during the ribbon cutting ceremony for the inauguration of Mineski’s new office.

Zamora said that the inauguration of Mineski’s global HQ happily coincided not just with the inclusion of esports as a medal sport in the SEA Games, but also with many changes in the city that are aimed at fostering innovation. He said he was looking forward to the growth of esports in San Juan and throughout the Philippines.

Mineski unveils new business ventures

At the inauguration, Mineski Global also introduced new business ventures along with revitalized existing units.

These include Mineski Esports, its event organizing and marketing arm; Mineski Academy, which oversees esports curriculum development; Mineski Talents, which manages top esports athletes and influencers; Mineski Tech, which develops innovative gaming-related solutions for its partners; and Mineski Spaces, which will handle Mineski Infinity, the company’s cybercafe business. Mineski has over 130 cybercafes across the Philippines, Indonesia, and Thailand.

In addition, Mineski Global has tapped Philippine information technology industry veteran Patrick Larraga as its Head of Marketing.

With its new business ventures, Mineski Global is aggressively building a bigger ecosystem for esports in Southeast Asia.

The future is bright for esports in Asia and the rest of the world. And Mineski Global seems determined to lead the way.