RIVRS $1M USD Fund Boosts Southeast Asia Gaming Ecosystem

• RIVRS launches $1M USD Creator Fund to boost Southeast Asian Roblox developers and studios.
• Establishes AI hub in Vietnam and publishing headquarter in Hong Kong as a part of Asian expansion.
• Southeast Asia’s $5.37B USD gaming market emerges as a primary UGC innovation frontier.
  

In a major boost for Southeast Asia’s ever-evolving gaming economy, French UGC platform RIVRS has launched a $1 million USD Creator Fund to support Roblox developers and studios in the region. 

This fund will enable creators to scale promising titles and provide financing for the teams that want to enter the user-generated content (UGC) market. It will also churn and cultivate innovative content born out of regional minds.

"We’re combining French know-how with local expertise to create a unique UGC developer community," said RIVRS co-founder Romain Hubert. 

Expanding Roots: AI Innovation Hub and Asia HQ

This move is a part of RIVRS’ broader strategy to make its roots stronger in Asia's digital entertainment market. Apart from the fund, this European company has opened an AI-driven innovation hub in Da Nang, Vietnam, and a regional publishing headquarters in Hong Kong. This is one of the most significant expansions for RIVRS outside Europe since its inception in 2021.

RIVRS’ new Vietnamese hub is run by experts who aim to create original, RIVRS-backed titles to break into the global UGC top 100. The Hong Kong regional headquarters, on the other hand, will explore expansion prospects through market evaluation, community development, and strategic collaborations. RIVRS already has a solid foundation, with over 400,000 Roblox and Discord fans and more than 20M game visits, which it intends to use for future growth.

The Vision Behind RIVRS Asia

RIVRS' another co-founder Loïc Deffains noted that the establishment of RIVRS Asia goes beyond the launching of a new studio. It represents the development of a centralized hub to streamline tools and services for the organization's growing production team. Deffains says, “This is a decisive step in structuring our growth and giving our creators the means to go even further."

Opportunities and Hurdles in the SEA UGC Market

The RIVRS expansion is both an opportunity and a hurdle for Southeast Asian (SEA) creators. The new funding system may provide direct financial support and access to global publishing tools without the need for relocation. It also provides an opportunity for regionally inspired storytelling to reach global audiences. However, other creator programs present a formidable challenge. For example, Gamefam's $5M USD Roblox Creator Fund, a global initiative which targets creators worldwide, including the SEA region. With such similar initiatives already present, RIVRS' current program might face a tad bit of difficulty in sustaining long-term participation, simultaneously also providing high-quality content in open UGC and sandbox environments.

SEA’s Powerpacked Gaming Market

According to Niko Partners, Southeast Asia (SEA) Market Model and 5-Year Forecast, the region generated $5.37B USD in 2024 with a 5.2% annual growth. SEA has also recorded 1.93B mobile game downloads in Q1 2025, making SEA the second-largest market worldwide in terms of downloads. However, the in-app purchase (IAP) is relatively modest, ranking SEA seventh globally in the same quarter, highlighting that more efforts are required for deeper monetization and retention.

Despite those hurdles, the $1M USD Creators Fund sends a clear message that Southeast Asia is not merely a consumer of global gaming trends. This initiative also underscores growing confidence in Southeast Asia’s creative ability. Following the company's latest €4M fundraising round and push into AI-driven production hubs, the region’s exciting demographics could shape the future of UGC and sandbox entertainment.