20.10.2020 08:29:19 CEST | Play Magnus AS | Non-regulatory press releases

(Oslo, 19 October 2020) - The Nordic trading platform Skilling becomes the title partner for the first tournament in the Champion Chess Tour, which is organized by the Play Magnus Group. As part of the agreement, Magnus Carlsen will also act as Skilling’s ambassador and represent their brand in conjunction with the launch that will take place this autumn.

“I have been fascinated by Skilling as a fintech player, and I like their desire to make things accessible and easy for both beginners and those with experience. We share the view that everyone with an interest in something should have the opportunity to utilize and develop their full potential,” says World Chess Champion, Magnus Carlsen.

Espen Agdestein, formerly the manager of Magnus Carlsen for ten years and one of the founders of Play Magnus, has been central in the work on the agreement in his function as a strategic advisor for partnerships in Play Magnus Group. He says that monetization is important for the tour, and that the collaboration with Skilling is the first example of the commercial opportunities created through the Champions Chess Tour.

“In chess, one must constantly consider possible gains against potential risk. In order to make the right decisions over the chessboard, it is crucial to understand the situation, both in the short and long term. A finance company like Skilling thus becomes a natural partner for Magnus Carlsen personally, and for the Champions Chess Tour. The agreement is also an important step in building a financially sustainable foundation around the tour,” says Espen Agdestein, strategic advisor in the Play Magnus Group.

The Champions Chess Tour was started as a response to the Covid-19 outbreak in the spring of 2020, and all the games are played online. The Champions Chess Tour runs from November 2020 to September 2021, and Magnus Carlsen and the rest of the world elite world's top players will compete in a total of ten online tournaments. The first tournament, Skilling Open, runs from 22 to 30 November and is broadcast on TV 2 Sport, among other places.

“Skilling offers online trading on a wide range of the world’s stock, currency and commodity markets. We are now working more actively with marketing aimed at the Nordic market, and the sponsorship collaboration with Play Magnus and Magnus Carlsen will be an important part of our investment in Norway and the Nordic region. In addition, chess players are analytical and clever people, and we believe many of them will be interested in international financial trading,” says André Lavold, CEO of Skilling Group.

The agreement runs for 12 months, but it is the intention of both parties to extend the agreement if the collaboration works well.

Play Magnus Group offers services where everyone can play, watch and learn chess. The group’s services consist of the Play Magnus App Suite, chess24, Chessable, and CoChess, in addition to the Champions Chess Tour.

About Play Magnus Group

The Play Magnus Group is a global leader in the chess industry focused on providing premier digital experiences for millions of chess players and students. The company offers e-learning and entertainment services via its market leading brands: chess24, Chessable, CoChess, the Play Magnus App Suite, and the Champions Chess Tour. The Group's mission is to grow chess to make the world a smarter place by encouraging more people to play, watch, study, and earn a living from chess. 

About Skilling

Skilling was established in 2016 by Optimizer Invest, which is an investment company started by the Norwegian and Swedish tech entrepreneurs André Lavold, Henrik Persson Ekdahl and Mikael Riese Harstad. Skilling offers online trading on a wide range of world markets in one and the same platform, such as Norwegian or international stocks like Equinor or Tesla, stock indices such as Nasdaq or OBX, gold, oil or cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin. Skilling's vision is to make trading interesting and accessible to everyone, in a transparent and secure way.

Contacts

  • Espen Agdestein, strategic advisor for partnerships in Play Magnus AS, +47 922 55 093, espen.agdestein@gmail.com
  • André Lavold, CEO of Skilling Group, +34 630 434646, andre@skilling.com

Attachments

  • Download announcement as PDF.pdf

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