Nazara raises Rs 900 crore, ups stake in Absolute Sports to 91 pc

Mumbai: Homegrown gaming and sports media company Nazara Technologies on Wednesday said it has raised Rs 900 crore as preferential equity issue to boost its growth trajectory.

The capital infusion will fuel strategic acquisitions, fund business expansion, and enhance the company’s ability to seize new growth opportunities, it said in a statement.

Nazara also acquired an additional 19.35 per cent stake in Absolute Sports, the parent company of Sportskeeda, for Rs 145.5 crore, with 50 per cent of the consideration paid in cash and the remaining amount in stock. With this, Nazara now holds a 91 per cent ownership stake in Absolute Sports.

“The Rs 900 crore fundraise will be instrumental in accelerating our growth across key segments. Additionally, the growth of Absolute Sports, from its early days as a startup to becoming a global media player, underscores our commitment to supporting innovative teams that consistently deliver transformational growth,” said Nitish Mittersain, CEO and Joint MD of Nazara Technologies.

The preferential equity issue will be placed with investors such as SBI Mutual Fund, Junomoneta Finsol (an associate of Plutus Wealth), Think Investments, Discovery Investments, Mithun and Siddharth Sacheti, Cohesion Investments, Chartered Finance and Leasing, Ratnabali Investments and Aamara Capital.

These shares will be subject to SEBI regulations and lock-in requirements as per Chapter V of the SEBI (Issue of Capital and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations 2018.

Sportskeeda reaches millions of sports fans globally each month, with significant traction in India and the US.

Nazara last week acquired 47.7 per cent stake in Moonshine Technology, the parent company of PokerBaazi, for Rs 832 crore through a secondary transaction. Additionally, Nazara will infuse Rs 150 crore in primary capital into Moonshine via compulsory convertible preference shares.

PokerBaazi drives over 85 per cent of Moonshine’s net revenue, while its fantasy sports platform, SportsBaazi, contributes 12 per cent. PokerBaazi had 340,000 monthly active users (as of May 2024).

–IANS