Nazara Acquires 47.7% Stake in PokerBaazi Parent Moonshine Technology with Rs 982 Cr Investment

Moonshine Technology, the parent company of Pokerbaazi has announced that gaming business Nazara will invest Rs 982 crore to acquire a sizable interest through a combination of main and secondary share transactions.

Nazara’s board has approved the purchase of 18,96,674 equity shares of Moonshine through a secondary purchase from current owners, including PSM Group, Bellerive Capital, and others. For a total cost of Rs 832 crore, which comprises a secondary purchase of ₹592 crore and a share swap valued at ₹239 crore, the Mumbai-based company will acquire a 47.7% stake.

Nazara will additionally contribute ₹150 crore to the agreement to buy Moonshine’s principal shares. With this further funding, It will possess most of PokerBaazi’s shares.

Over 85% of Moonshine’s net revenue comes from PokerBaazi, with SportsBaazi, the company’s fantasy sports platform, contributing 12%. PokerBaazi had 340,000 monthly active users as of May 2024. The firm has reported unaudited revenue of ₹414.9 crore and an EBITDA of ₹41.2 crore for the fiscal year that concluded in March 2024. Its revenue was ₹268 crore in FY23, while its EBITDA was ₹27 crore.

Entrackr reported that PokerBaazi and Nazara Games were sent a detailed questionnaire about the deal last month. In response, PokerBaazi’s spokesperson dismissed the report as fake, while Nazara’s spokesperson termed it speculation.

Nazara has been investing and acquiring since FY25; in the last several months, the company has bought or invested in six firms. It purchased a 15.86% share in e-sports startup Stan earlier this week. It paid $27.2 million in all-cash last month to purchase UK-based Fusebox Games. Nazara also took over the assets of Deltia’s Gaming, purchased Paper Boat Apps, the developer of Kiddopia, and obtained the IP rights for Ultimate Teen Patti.

Source : Entrackr