🚀 Medial Secures Investment on Shark Tank India - Fueling the Future of Professional Social Networking. 🔥
✕
Login
Home
News
Messages
Startup Showcase
Trackers
Premium
Premium Content
Jobs
Notifications
Settings
Try our Valuation Calculator →
Log In
News on Medial
Nazara picks up 47% stake in PokerBaazi parent Moonshine for Rs 832 crore
Economic Times
·
10m ago
Medial
Gaming firm Nazara Technologies has acquired a 47.7% stake in online poker gaming platform PokerBaazi's parent company, Moonshine Technology. The deal, worth INR 832 crore ($113 million), includes a primary capital injection of INR 150 crore ($20 million) through compulsory convertible preference shares. Moonshine generates the majority of its revenue from PokerBaazi, with 340,000 monthly active users as of May 2024. This acquisition comes after Nazara purchased a 15.8% stake in esports platform Stan. Nazara has been active in M&A activities, including the acquisition of UK-based gaming studio Fusebox Games and US-based Deltias Gaming.
View Source
Related News
Nazara acquires 47.7% stake in PokerBaazi’s parent for $100 Mn
Entrackr
·
11m ago
Medial
Gaming firm Nazara has announced an investment of Rs 982 crore in PokerBaazi’s parent company, Moonshine Technology, to acquire a majority stake through a mix of secondary and primary share purchases. Nazara’s board has approved the acquisition of 18,96,674 equity shares of Moonshine from existing shareholders, including PSM Group, Bellerive Capital, and other individuals, via a secondary purchase, according to a disclosure sourced from the National Stock Exchange. The Mumbai-based company will acquire a 47.7% stake for a total consideration of Rs 832 crore ($100 million), which includes a secondary purchase of Rs 592 crore and a share swap valued at Rs 239 crore. As part of the deal, Nazara will also invest Rs 150 crore to purchase primary shares of Moonshine. This additional investment will make Nazara as the majority stakeholder in PokerBaazi. This deal represents one of the largest consolidations in the poker space, which is considered a skill-based gaming segment. PokerBaazi accounts for over 85% of Moonshine’s net revenue, while its fantasy sports platform, SportsBaazi, contributes 12%. As of May 2024, PokerBaazi reported approximately 340,000 monthly active users. Entrackr reached out to PokerBaazi and Nazara Games last month with a detailed questionnaire regarding the deal. At that time, PokerBaazi’s spokesperson dismissed the news as fake, while Nazara’s spokesperson referred to it as mere speculation. Nazara has been on an acquisition and investment spree since FY25, having acquired or invested in six startups over the past few months. Earlier this week, it acquired a 15.86% stake in e-sports startup Stan. Last month, it acquired UK-based Fusebox Games for $27.2 million in an all-cash transaction. Additionally, Nazara acquired Kiddopia’s developer Paper Boat Apps, secured IP rights for Ultimate Teen Patti, and took over assets of DeltiasGaming.
View Source
Nazara To Make Its Biggest Bet Of INR 982 Cr In Pokerbaazi Parent
Inc42
·
10m ago
Medial
Nazara, a startup, has entered into an agreement to acquire a 47.7% stake in Moonshine Technology, the parent company of online poker platform Pokerbaazi. This acquisition will enhance Nazara's presence in the online gaming industry and make Moonshine a subsidiary of Nazara. Moonshine Technology has several subsidiaries, including Ross Technologies, Baazi Networks, Baazi Games, and SBN Gaming Network.
View Source
Nazara Ropes In M&A Consultant Arun Gupta As Addl Director
Inc42
·
7m ago
Medial
Nazara, a gaming major, has appointed Arun Bhandari as company secretary and compliance officer. They have also signed a call option agreement with Moonshine Technology, the parent company of Pokerbaazi, giving them the option to purchase up to a 1% stake for up to INR 25 crore. Additionally, Nazara's board has approved extending the second close long stop date for the acquisition of a 22% stake in adtech company Datawrkz to January 31, 2025.
View Source
PokerBaazi parent crosses Rs 400 Cr revenue in FY24; profits grew 26%
Entrackr
·
7m ago
Medial
Fintrackr All Stories PokerBaazi parent crosses Rs 400 Cr revenue in FY24; profits grew 26% Moonshine Technology, which operates PokerBaazi, SportsBaazi, and CardBazzi, demonstrated 55% growth in its operating revenue to Rs 415 crore in FY24 from Rs 268 crore in FY23. The platform fees/service transaction fees received from the users were the sole source of revenue for Moonshine. The firm also added Rs 9 crore mainly from the interest on bank deposits which tallied its overall income to Rs 424 crore in FY24, compared to Rs 273 crore in FY23. At the time of acquisition, Moonshine disclosed that PokerBaazi accounts for over 85% of its net revenue, while its fantasy sports platform, SportsBaazi, contributes 12%. Similar to other online gaming platforms, Moonshine spent 60% of its overall expenditure on advertising. This cost surged 83% to Rs 232 crore in FY24 from Rs 127 crore in FY23. Its employee benefits also grew 62% to Rs 89 crore in FY24. Its payment gateway, website/server, customer verification, and legal costs took the overall expenditure up by 55.6% to Rs 389 crore in FY24 from Rs 250 crore in FY23. The decent surge in scale and controlled expenditure helped Moonshine to increase its profits by 26.3% to Rs 24 crore in FY24, compared to Rs 19 crore in FY23. The company's ROCE and EBITDA margin stood at 20% and 10.1%, respectively, while its expense-to-earnings ratio was recorded at Rs 0.94. During FY24, Moonshine’s total current assets stood at Rs 236 crore with cash and bank balances of Rs 196 crore. Out of Rs 982 crore ($118 million), Nazara has already invested $100 million and acquired a 47.7% stake in the company through a combination of secondary and primary share purchases.
View Source
Nazara’s Absolute Sports acquires TJRWrestling.net and ITRWrestling.com
Entrackr
·
3m ago
Medial
Absolute Sports, a subsidiary of Nazara Technologies and the parent company of Sportskeeda.com, has signed definitive agreements to acquire TJRWrestling.net and ITRWrestling.com from Titan Insider Digital. The acquisition, valued at $1.25 million (approximately Rs 10.5 crore), is an all-cash asset purchase via Absolute Sports' U.S. subsidiary, Sportskeeda Inc., and is expected to close within 45 days. This acquisition aims to strengthen Sportskeeda's presence in the combat sports segment and expand its reach in the U.S. market. Ajay Pratap Singh, CEO of Absolute Sports, stated that the acquisition aligns with the company's vision to be a leading destination for wrestling content worldwide. TJRWrestling, and ITRWrestling, collectively attract 1.7 million monthly active users and generate 4.6 million monthly pageviews, primarily from North America. In 2024, the two platforms reported combined revenues of $722,000 (approximately Rs 6.1 crore). Nazara has a history of strategic acquisitions to expand its digital media and gaming portfolio. In 2019, it acquired a 67% stake in Sportskeeda for Rs 44 crore. Other acquisitions include Nextwave Multimedia, Nodwin Gaming, Paper Boat Apps (Kiddopia), WildWorks, and a 47.7% stake in Moonshine Technology, the parent company of PokerBaazi, for Rs 832 crore. In 2024, Nazara acquired Comic Con India for Rs 55 crore through its subsidiary Nodwin Gaming and UK's Fusebox Games for $27.2 million. In January 2025, it purchased two mobile games, King of Thieves and CATS: Crash Arena Turbo Stars, from Zeptolab for $7.7 million. Nazara has also set aside $100 million for future mergers and acquisitions to further its global expansion strategy.
View Source
Nazara invests in ReelSaga; FemiSafe snags funding
VCCircle
·
5m ago
Medial
Nazara Technologies invested $250,000 in ReelSaga for a 3.57% stake, supporting the short video platform's pre-seed funding round. Kochi-based women's health brand FemiSafe secured Rs 3 crore from Kerala Angel Network and other investors to expand its hygiene product offerings. Separately, Nazara sold its 94.85% stake in rummy platform OpenPlay to PokerBaazi’s parent company, Moonshine, for Rs 104.34 crore, via a share swap, enhancing Moonshine's rummy portfolio.
View Source
Nazara invests Rs 196 Cr in five firms including Funky Monkeys Play
Entrackr
·
8m ago
Medial
Nazara Technologies Limited, India's premier listed gaming and esports company, has invested Rs 196 crores in four gaming companies. The company acquired a 60% stake in Funky Monkeys Play for Rs 43.7 crore. This investment in Funky Monkeys Play is aimed to expand Nazara’s footprints into physical entertainment. Nazara also invested Rs 4.2 crores in LearnTube.ai, an AI-driven educational platform with over 20 lakh users, to improve gamified learning experiences. The rest of the Rs 148 crore has been allocated to existing subsidiaries, including Nodwin Gaming, Sportskeeda, and Datawrkz at Rs 64 crore, Rs 69 crore and Rs 15 crore, respectively. “These initiatives align with our vision of creating a diversified global gaming and entertainment platform,” said Nitish Mittersain, CEO, Nazara. Nazara continues to dominate India's esports landscape with back to back acquisitions through main and subsidiaries. Recently, Nazara-backed NODWIN Gaming acquired a gaming agency Trinity Gaming for $2.8 million. In October, Nazara' subsidiary Datawrkz acquired a 100% stake in UK-based Space & Time. It also invested Rs 982 crore in PokerBaazi’s parent Moonshine Technology and acquired stakes in e-sports companies such as Stan, Fusebox Games, Kiddopia’s developer Paper Boat Apps, Ultimate Teen Patti, and DeltiasGaming. Last month, the Mumbai-based firm also raised Rs 855 crore (approximately $100 million) through a preferential issue. Nazara’s revenue from operations reported a modest growth of 7.4% Q-o-Q to Rs 319 crore in Q2 FY25 with profits increasing only 2.4% to Rs 21.75 crore in the same period. Before the market closed on Monday, the company’s shares were trading at Rs 1,012, with a total market capitalization of Rs 7,747 crore (approximately $922 million).
View Source
Nazara Bags Shareholders’ Nod To Fetch 48% Stake In Pokerbaazi’s Parent
Inc42
·
9m ago
Medial
Nazara, a leading gaming company, has received approval for acquiring a 47.7% stake in Pokerbaazi's parent company. The deal was finalized at an extraordinary general meeting held on October 12. Moonshine, the parent company, originally started with online poker but has since expanded into card games, fantasy sports, and spectator gaming. The acquisition is valued at INR 181.5 Cr and solidifies Nazara's position in the gaming industry.
View Source
Nazara to raise Rs 900 crore, hikes stake in Absolute Sports to 91%
Economic Times
·
10m ago
Medial
Nazara Technologies, a gaming and media firm, has approved a preferential equity issue to raise Rs 900 crore from investors including SBI Mutual Fund and Think Investments. The funding will be used for strategic acquisitions, expanding the business, and capitalizing on growth opportunities. In addition, Nazara has acquired a further 19.35% stake in Absolute Sports, the parent company of sports news website Sportskeeda, for Rs 145.5 crore. With this acquisition, Nazara holds a 91% stake in Absolute Sports. The company has been active in acquisitions recently, expanding its presence in the esports and events sectors.
View Source
Nazara Technologies increases stake in Next Wave Multimedia
Entrackr
·
7m ago
Medial
Nazara Technologies Limited has acquired 1,000 equity shares of Next Wave Multimedia and increased its equity holding in the latter to 74.88% from 71.88%. The company has paid Rs 2.3 crore as the first tranche and will discharge the balance amount in due course, Nazara said in a stock exchange filing. Nextwave remains a subsidiary of Nazara Technologies. The second tranche will include buying 8,375 shares, representing 25.12% of Nextwave Multimedia, for Rs 19.33 crore either by cash or stock issuance of Nazara Technologies within six months of the closure of the first tranche. Nazara first acquired a majority stake in Nextwave Multimedia in 2018 and increased its stake to 71.88 percent in May 2023. Last month, Mumbai-based Nazara Technologies raised Rs 855 crore (approximately $100 million) through a preferential issue. The board approved the allotment on November 27, 2024, after receiving application funds from eligible investors. In the September quarter (Q2 FY25), Nazara Technologies reported a 7.3% year-on-year increase in revenue to Rs 318.94 crore, while its profit grew by 10.85% to Rs 21.97 crore. Recently, gaming and esports company Nodwin Gaming has received approval of Rs 64 crore in funding from its parent company Nazara Technologies. It also acquired Trinity Gaming for Rs 24 crore.
View Source
Trackers
Active Indian VC’s
OG Capital
Email
With a hands-on approach, OG Capital aims to invest in over 20 promising...
Accel Partners
Email
Early and growth-stage investments in disruptive technology companies with...
Blume
Email
Early-stage venture capital firm investing in technology startups in India. Focus on...
Access All Trackers
Startup Showcase Winners
June 2025
Buddy
Helping your parents when you are miles away
BiteStop
The Pit Stop Your Cravings Deserve
Bloomer
The next generation E-commerce platform
Enter Ongoing Startup Showcase
Top Users
Trending News on Medial
Download the medial app to read full posts, comements and news.
Go to Medial App
Not Now
Know everything that’s happening in the startup ecosystem, first.
Enable Notifications?
No, thanks
Count me in