Nazara signals hit on PokerBaazi stake after real money gaming ban
Nazara Technologies Ltd’s Chief Executive Officer Nitish Mittersain said that the company's investment in PokerBaazi stands to be written down or provisioned for now
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Nazara Technologies is likely to write down its investment in Moonshine Technologies, parent of PokerBaazi, after the Indian government banned real money gaming businesses this week.
According to a report by Bloomberg News, Nazara Technologies Ltd’s Chief Executive Officer Nitish Mittersain said that the company's investment in PokerBaazi stands to be written down or provisioned for now.
Mittersain told the media agency he will be sitting down with auditors, and added, "It is still early days...we tend to be conservative in our accounting".
On Wednesday, Nazara Technologies issued a clarification on the Bombay Stock Exchange on its gaming portfolio. The company, backed by marquee investors, said it has no direct exposure to RMG businesses. Referring to its Q1 FY26 results, Nazara highlighted that the contribution and EBITDA from RMG were nil.
However, the company acknowledged "indirect" exposure through its 46.07% stake in Moonshine Technologies Private Limited, the parent of PokerBaazi. “Since Nazara neither holds a majority stake nor exercises control, Moonshine’s revenue is not consolidated in our financials. Its share of profit and loss has in fact, been negative for Q1 FY26,” the company stated in a stock exchange filing.
Nazara has invested Rs 805 crore in Moonshine and holds convertible shares worth Rs 255 crore.
Mittersain also said the company is resilient to any kind of disruption. In an interview with CNBCTV-18, he said, "We own 46% in Moonshine, and if the government bans real money gaming, that particular investment could potentially be at risk".
"The important clarification I want to make is that the revenue and profitability of Nazara would not get impacted," the CEO added.
Nazara Technologies posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 51.34 crore during the June quarter of FY2026 compared to Rs 23.6 crore in the same period of FY25. The online gaming company's revenue surged 99.5% year-on-year to Rs 498.7 crore from Rs 250 crore, while EBITDA climbed 87.4% to Rs 47.2 crore from Rs 25.2 crore.
The Indian Parliament passed the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025 on Thursday, marking a decisive step by the Union government to regulate India’s fast-growing gaming ecosystem.
The Bill aims to create a legal framework for esports and educational gaming while imposing a blanket ban on all online money games, irrespective of whether they are games of skill or chance.
Meanwhile, shares of Nazara Technologies have fallen 23% in the past two days. The stock closed at Rs 1,193.90 apiece, down 2.09% today.
