Nazara Technologies' shares slump nearly 5 pc as PokerBaazi halts real-money gaming

Mumbai, Aug 22 (IANS) Shares of Nazara Technologies Limited fell another 5 per cent on Friday, extending their losing streak after PokerBaazi, an associate company, stopped all real-money gaming operations.

The move follows the passage of the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025, which bans all forms of online money-based games.

The Bill, cleared by both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha without debate, is aimed at tackling addiction, financial losses, and security concerns linked to online money gaming.

Nazara Technologies said in an exchange filing that it has no direct exposure to real-money gaming.

However, it holds a 46.07 per cent stake in Moonshine Technologies, the parent company of PokerBaazi.

The company clarified that real-money gaming contributes nothing to its revenue or Ebitda, but the market has reacted negatively to the development.

Nazara’s stock has dropped more than 17 per cent over the past five trading sessions. In the last one month, its shares have lost Rs 268.50 in value, or nearly 19 per cent.

At the closing bell, the shares of the firm were at Rs 1,146, down by Rs 59.2 or 4.91 per cent on the National Stock Exchange (NSE).

Meanwhile, PokerBaazi on Friday announced that it is stopping all real money online gaming with immediate effect.

“With a very heavy heart, we announce that PokerBaazi will be pausing its operations in compliance with The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025. Effective immediately, no real money games will be offered on our platform,” the company said in a statement.

It also said that the future course of action will be decided once the Bill is fully in place.

This move comes soon after big players like Dream11 and My11Circle also stopped their real money games earlier this week -- showing the wide impact of the new law on India’s fast-growing online gaming industry.

--IANS

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