Nazara Technologies shares came under fire, sinking over six percent, as the new draft online gaming bill received the Union Cabinet's nod. The bill aims to prohibit all pay-to-play online games, including both games of skill and chance, halting operations of regulated real-money gaming (RMG) platforms across India.
Nazara Technologies is India’s only publicly listed gaming company. The firm owns and operates Curve Games, Kiddopia, World Cricket Championship and Sportskeeda among others, along with offline gaming businesses such as Funky Monkeys and Smaash Entertainment.
In September 2024, Nazara Technologies had picked up a 47.7 percent stake in Moonshine Technology for around Rs 832 crore. The firm operates India's leading poker platform PokerBaazi, which is Nazara’s exposure to real-money gaming.
As of August 20, Nazara Technologies holds a 46.07 percent stake in the firm worth Rs 805 crore. Moonshine Technologies, PokerBaazi’s parent, is accounted as an associate and not consolidated in Nazara’s books.
"Nazara has no direct exposure to real money gaming businesses. As per its latest reported financials, the contribution to revenues and EBITDA by RMG business is nil. The company’s only indirect exposure to RMG is through its 46.07 percent stake in Moonshine," said the company, in a filing with the exchanges.
However, Nazara Technologies has been betting on PokerBaazi to drive user growth, revenues, and engagement. Following the gaming platform's earnings show for the June quarter, Centrum Broking noted that the firm's revenue growth over the past few quarters was supported by acquisitions.
For the quarter ended June, Moonshine Technology reported its highest ever quarterly revenue of Rs 192 crore, while its EBITDA fell to negative Rs 74 crore, which was a result of front-loaded marketing costs of around Rs 110 crore on IPL and SharkTank promotions.
In Q1, PokerBaazi’s gross gaming revenue (GGR) was up by 46 percent year-on-year, gross transactional value rose 23 percent YoY and deposits were 19 percent higher.
Nazara Technologies was also betting on product innovation to drive session depth, retention, and ARPU (average revenue per user). The firm added a PokerTV app with curated content, PokerBaaze School to teach users the advanced tools available, along with Poker Shots, meant for game analysis.
“The IPL campaign drove record DAUs (daily active users) and MAUs (monthly active users) and system user liquidity, while the May 2025 focus on the Pokerbaazi upgrade significantly boosted user engagement,” said the firm, in its post-earnings analyst call for the quarter ended June.
During the call, Nitish Mittersain, the founder and CEO of the firm, had said, “We are very excited about the PokerBaazi business. They continue to dominate and increase their market share. And as you know, with a lot of these skill-based real money gaming platforms, liquidity on the platform is a very large moat and I believe PokerBaazi has got that significant advantage.”
Going ahead, Nazara Technologies was aiming to deliver its ‘strongest ever quarter’ in Q2 for the PokerBaazi business. While profitability for the poker platform was not expected in FY26, the firm was looking to turn profitable in FY27.
Mittersain noted that if it weren’t for the lofty advertising and promotion expenditure, PokerBaazi would be profitable. “The marketing and branding spends that we're doing today is driven by our desire to really dominate the market and it is something that is in our control to dial up or dial down as we would like to,” he explained.
Way forward?
Speaking to CNBC-TV18, Mittersain said that if real-money gaming is banned, then Nazara Technologies’ Rs 805 crore investment into PokerBaazi will be at risk. However, he added that the core platform is strong and other opportunities can be explored.
Analysts were not as optimistic. Dharmesh Kant of Chola Securities noted that the online gaming bill will pose a serious negative for the real-money gaming industry. If this is paused, around 25-30 percent will be shaved off Nazara Technologies valuations.
According to Prabhudas Lilladher, the investment is at risk of being written off. The brokerage noted that PokerBaazi accounts for roughly 35 percent of its target price of Rs 1,345 for Nazara Technologies. If PokerBaazi is removed, then the updated target price would slip to Rs 917, a steep 30 percent haircut on the valuation.
Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts on Moneycontrol.com are their own and not those of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
