Nikhil Kamath turns bullish on gaming industry, invests Rs 100 crore in Nazara Tech

Nikhil Kamath increases stake in Nazara Tech: Nikhil Kamath, Co-Founder of Zerodha, a financial services firm, expressed his belief in the future growth of the gaming industry. This comes as Nazara Technologies approved the issuance of shares worth Rs 100 crore to Nikhil and Nithin Kamath, the founders of Zerodha.

According to Nazara Technology's regulatory filing, Kamath discussed his outlook on gaming and his investments in Nazara Technologies. Kamath revealed his intention to further increase his stake in Nazara, which currently stands at around 3.5 per cent, up from 1 per cent.

Global market of gaming

"Rate of growth in gaming, especially in the below 20 years category, is crazy, across the world not just in India," remarked Kamath. He believes that gaming and e-sports will experience faster growth compared to traditional content.

He praised Nazara as the incumbent leader in India's gaming industry, making it a logical choice for his investment. Kamath emphasised that this investment is unrelated to Zerodha and is a personal endeavour.

E-sports in India

Kamath also discussed the rapid growth of e-sports and its promising future. He encouraged innovative initiatives in e-sports and gaming, particularly by Indian companies, expressing hope that these firms will one day compete on the international stage.

On September 1, Republic reported Kamath's interest in increasing his stake in Nazara Technologies.

Nazara Technologies' financial performance

The company saw its revenue grow by 14 per cent to Rs 254.4 crore as against Rs 223.1 crore in Q1FY23. The profit rose 31 per cent to Rs 21 crore against Rs 16 crore in the same quarter previous fiscal.

Operating profit, also known as, earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) soared 10 per cent to Rs 33 crore against Rs 30 crore in Q1FY23. Margin rose to 13 per cent during the quarter. 

Nitish Mittersain, Founder, CEO and Joint MD of Nazara Technologies said, “Our revenue and EBITDA growth is expected to accelerate in coming quarters due to seasonality and our decision to defer key eSports launches to benefit from upcoming opportunities. Of note, Sportskeeda continued to deliver a strong performance with a strong 52 per cent growth YoY in revenues and 55 per cent in EBITDA."