Rayo Withanage family invests in gaming for philanthropy

The Withanage family, led by Rahula Withanage, is investing $20 million, alongside other investors, into a new technology platform that will gamify various forms of multimedia entertainment for philanthropy.

Gaming and the use of technology to “gamify” interactions can engage people in causes and fundraising in non-traditional ways. The Withanage family are particularly focused on developing the next iteration of telethons, and developing gamification in a way that rewards both consumers and charities through engagement with an interactive platform. This aligns with the Withanage family’s focus on impact media and technology businesses, which aim to disrupt industry norms and outperform “traditional” competitors, while delivering positive social and environmental impact.

The Withanage family office is behind the founding of the BMB Group and Scepter Partners, both multi-billion dollar investment platforms which unified sovereign investors across the Middle East and Asia.

Rayo Withanage, Rahula’s son, recently took a sabbatical from private equity and is currently working as Program Coordinator for the Withanage Foundation. Rayo Withanage is a New Zealand entrepreneur and philanthropist. In 2017, he purchased the famed Château de Vie estate which was Pablo Picasso’s final home. Château de Vie is one of the most important art production estates in the world, where Picasso produced artworks worth over $4 billion. The house is steeped in history and artistic legacy, having hosted Winston Churchill, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway, Salvador Dali, and iconic entertainers as diverse as Charlie Chaplin, Édith Piaf and the Rolling Stones. The estate has since been transferred to a new investment group that will be leading it moving forward.

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