Ukrainian product-focused IT company Holywater, which develops the MyDrama vertical series app, has raised $22 million in funding. The round was led by Horizon Capital with participation from U.S.-based funds Endeavor Catalyst and Wheelhouse, the company reported. Holywater’s valuation was not disclosed.
Company founder Bohdan Nesvit said this is the largest confirmed investment in the microdrama segment outside Asia and reflects the industry’s growing interest in short-form vertical storytelling. According to him, the format is becoming a sustainable direction for the development of digital content.
Holywater plans to allocate the raised funds to further develop the MyDrama vertical series streaming platform and to scale the company’s content ecosystem. The plans include expanding AI comics, animation, and anime verticals, as well as launching new genres. Particular focus will be placed on strengthening in-house infrastructure for the creation, testing, and distribution of intellectual property and on expanding content categories, including entry into the U.S. market.
Holywater operates an ecosystem of products with a combined audience of more than 50 million users. The ecosystem includes the AI-generated series platform MyMuse and the MyPassion book platform focused on romantic fiction. The MyDrama app was launched in spring 2024 as a vertical streaming platform offering more than 70 series across romance, drama, comedy, and thriller genres. The platform has around 6.8 million monthly active users, with some projects reaching up to 20 million views.
Holywater emerged from the Genesis ecosystem, which specializes in building and scaling product-driven IT companies. Under this model, startups validate their business models and, upon achieving stable revenue metrics, are spun off as independent companies. Notable projects from the ecosystem include the microlearning service Headway, the BetterMe fitness app suite, and mobile app developer appflame.
