Zupee cuts 200 jobs amid organisational restructuring

Zupee had previously cut 170 jobs in September 2025.

• Zupee to lay off 200 employees, nearly 40% of its workforce, amid RMG ban impact
• Laid-off staff to receive extra financial aid and extended health insurance coverage
• Zupee shifts focus to social games, esports, and AI storytelling after RMG ban

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Gaming and entertainment platform Zupee is laying off around 200 employees, representing nearly 40 percent of its workforce, as startups continues to grapple with the impact of the government's recent online gaming law that placed a blanket ban on real-money games (RMG).

Why is Zupee laying off employees?

Zupee stated that these job cuts are part of its ongoing efforts to "build a resilient, future-ready business aligned with the evolving regulatory and market landscape". The move comes around four months after the Delhi-NCR based startup cut 170 jobs in September 2025.

Going forward, Zupee intends to sharpen its focus on core growth areas including culturally-rooted online social games and emerging content formats.

“Decisions like these are never easy. Our people have played an important role in Zupee’s journey and we deeply value their contributions. However, as we continue to align our organisation with long-term priorities, some changes are necessary to ensure the business remains sustainable and future-focused,” Zupee founder Dilsher Singh Malhi said in a statement. Inc42 first reported this development.

How is Zupee supporting laid-off employees?

Zupee said the company will provide employees with additional financial support based on years of service, beyond the contractual notice period. Employee health insurance coverage will remain active for its full term, even after they leave Zupee, and in addition, Zupee has set up a Rs 1 crore medical support fund to provide additional security.

The startup has setup a dedicated team to work with industry stakeholders to identify new work opportunities for impacted employees, and they will also be given first priority for re-hiring as new roles become available.

What does Zupee do?

Founded by Malhi and Siddhant Saurabh in 2018, Zupee focused on board games such as Ludo, Snakes and Ladders, and Carrom.

In recent months, subsequent to the RMG ban, the company has tapped into a range of consumer internet categories, including microdramas and esports (Zupee Studio), astrology (Neo Astro), and microlearning (SuperLearn). In November, it acquired Australian AI startup Nucanon to create a new AI-powered interactive storytelling vertical. The company has over 200 million registered users.

Zupee was last valued at $600 million when it raised a $102 million funding round in January 2022. The company has raised a total of over $121 million to date and counts WestCap Group, Tomales Bay Capital, Nepean Capital, AJ Capital, Z47 (previously Matrix Partners India), and Orios Venture Partners among its investors.

Read: 2025 was the year real-money gaming died in India. What next?

What challenges are the RMG platforms facing in India?

Last year, India enacted a new online gaming law, the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, which prohibits online money games, where a user makes a deposit, directly or indirectly, with the expectation of earning winnings on that deposit.

This triggered a sudden collapse of the country's $3.5 billion real-money gaming industry, leading to a widespread cost-cutting, with companies laying off around 3,000 employees as revenues dried up and they scrambled to survive in the new reality.

Apart from Zupee, the companies who have cut jobs include Head Digital Works (A23), Gameskraft, Games24x7, Mobile Premier League (MPL), Nazara Technologies-backed Baazi Games (Moonshine Technology), and Junglee Games.