“Digital Satta”: Opinion Trading platforms face ban under Online Gaming Bill
Opinion trading platforms such as Probo, MPL Opinio, and SportsBaazi allow users to predict outcomes on a wide range of events—from sports matches and celebrity activities to elections and public policy developments.
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The government’s move to pass the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill in the Lok Sabha has set the stage for a sweeping regulatory overhaul of India’s digital gaming and prediction ecosystem. While the Bill seeks to ban real money gaming (RMG) platforms that rely on wagering and betting, it has also opened the door for opinion trading platforms to face the same fate, drawing them into the category of chance-based gambling.
Opinion trading platforms such as Probo, MPL Opinio, and SportsBaazi allow users to predict outcomes on a wide range of events - from sports matches and celebrity activities to elections and public policy developments. Users bet money on their predictions, and payouts are based on whether those predictions turn out to be correct. This model, critics argue, mirrors gambling in digital disguise and exposes millions of mostly young Indians to financial risks, addiction, and psychological stress.
Siddharth Chandrashekhar, Bombay High Court counsel said, "Opinion trading platforms fall under online money gaming as a category under chance. The Bill passed by Lok Sabha prohibits both online money games of skill and chance. The Opinion trading platforms operate under grey area and are not regulated by SEBI or by any other government body. The bill however does not mention any explicit exclusion in the bill when Opinion Trading platforms is concerned as per interpretation."
Jay Sayta, technology and gaming lawyer said, "The Opinion trading platforms face the similar fate just like online money games."
“Digital Satta” in a New Avatar
The sharpest criticism has come from Praveen Khandelwal, BJP Member of Parliament and Secretary General of the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT). He has repeatedly described opinion trading as “digital satta” — a modern version of traditional gambling.
“Opinion trading platforms are a menace to society. Many youths have fallen prey to these platforms and lost huge sums of money. These platforms are nothing more than satta operating online. There is an urgent need for a crackdown. I have already written to the government demanding immediate action, and I will also raise this issue in Parliament,” Khandelwal had told Storyboard18.
His remarks echo a broader concern that these platforms are eroding both financial stability for individuals and the credibility of democratic processes, particularly when bets are placed on election outcomes.
CAIT has been especially vocal, mobilizing traders and consumer groups to press for a ban. B.C. Bhartia, CAIT National President, recently sent a strongly worded letter — accessed by Storyboard18 — to IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal. The letter highlighted the explosive growth of these platforms, which now claim more than 50 million active users across India.
The scale of financial activity on opinion trading platforms is staggering. Industry estimates suggest that transactions exceed ₹50,000 crore annually, with projected revenues touching ₹1,000 crore in FY 2024–25. CAIT has warned that such unchecked growth without regulatory oversight poses risks not only to individual consumers but also to broader societal and democratic institutions.
The traders’ body has also flagged concerns about the impact on India’s electoral democracy, pointing to platforms that allow users to bet on election results. According to CAIT, this could distort public perception, influence narratives, and undermine the credibility of electoral institutions—an issue it has urged the government to treat as a matter of national interest.
On the other side of the debate, platform operators argue that opinion trading is misunderstood. Anurag Dhandhi, Business Head at Probo, said the sector should not be equated with gambling.
“In India, opinion trading has been characterised as a game. However, in the United States, it has been regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission as a Designated Contract Market—a financial market for information exchange and trading. At its very core, opinion trading (prediction markets) is a tool for economic insight, information aggregation, and forecasting,” Dhandhi explained.
He stressed that, unlike gambling, prediction markets involve judgment, knowledge, and analysis of real-world events, enabling users to make informed forecasts. “By fostering responsible participation, opinion trading goes beyond entertainment. It contributes to financial literacy, data-driven decision-making, and strengthens the larger digital economy,” he added.
One thing, however, is clear: just like real money gaming operators, opinion trading platforms are staring at an uncertain future—possibly one defined by prohibition rather than progress.
