With a fresh £50 million investment from Goldman Sachs in the bank, Codemasters is confident that its overall value will now outstrip the general growth of the industry.

The firm announced the megabucks windfall last month, as investment firm Balderton Capital bought yet another chunk of the publisher’s stock.

The company is now ready to attack the North American market in the next decade – and watch its value exceed
industry forecasts as a result.

“We anticipate significant growth year-on-year, which will be ahead of industry statistics,” Codemasters’ CEO Rod Cousens told MCV.

“Product development timelines on next generation systems can exceed two years and we will continue to place quality as the main driver for commercial content and this should mean a phased ramp-up beyond CY09.

“Codemasters has been setting the stage for growth for the past two years, through strategic management appointments, broad-based distribution deals and quality-focused product development. We now have the financial fuel we need to drive our business through a further expansion of our portfolio and reach on a global scale, in particular the North American region.”

Earlier this year, the publisher announced plans for an IPO, following the turnaround of a £13 million loss during 2005 into a £1.1 million profit for the year ending June 30th 2006.

“As the company makes progress it will continue to review its options as part of its overall business practices,” added a confident Cousens.

“There are many factors to be considered and these will obviously be diligently looked at.”