India’s real-money gaming (RMG) industry has suffered one of its most severe disruptions in years, with more than Rs70 billion ($840 million) written off and over 7,000 jobs eliminated as the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act (PROGA) remains unnotified nearly 90 days after passage.
According to local media outlet Storyboard18, total revenue losses have exceeded Rs100 billion ($1.2 billion), while the government faces an estimated shortfall of Rs56 billion ($670 million) in GST, TDS and income-tax collections.
The collapse has unfolded even before the law has been brought into force. Executives told Storyboard18 that the downturn is being driven almost entirely by uncertainty and expectations of enforcement, rather than actual regulation. Listed companies alone have written off more than Rs70 billion ($840 million), while nearly 7,000 workers have been laid off across technology, operations and customer support functions.
A GST levy of 40 percent on online money gaming—implemented on September 22nd—has intensified the financial strain. Industry estimates point to Rs100 billion ($1.2 billion) in lost revenue, a Rs36 billion ($430 million) GST shortfall, and a further Rs20 billion ($240 million) decline in TDS and income-tax contributions.
Technology and gaming lawyer Jay Sayta criticized the government’s prolonged delay in notifying the Act. “It is surprising that the government, which passed the legislation with alacrity—completing the entire process from cabinet approval to presidential assent in less than 96 hours—is now unable to issue a notification appointing a date to bring the law formally into force for the last three months,” he said.
Sayta added that until PROGA is notified, its penalties cannot legally be imposed and banks are not barred from serving gaming businesses. “Once the notification is issued, they would immediately have to cease all operations,” he said.
Heavy financial impact on global and domestic companies
The financial hit is now visible across quarterly disclosures by both Indian and international firms.
Flutter Entertainment booked a $556 million impairment after its India business, Junglee Games, halted all cash-based rummy operations. The write-down contributed to a $789 million net loss for the September quarter, compared with $114 million a year earlier. CEO Peter Jackson described the regulatory shock as “sudden and unexpected.”
Nazara Technologies recorded a Rs9.15 billion ($110 million) write-down on its investment in Moonshine Technologies, parent company of PokerBaazi, reducing the unit’s carrying value to Rs965 million ($11.6 million) after revenue ceased abruptly.
Canadian investor Clairvest reported an unrealized loss of Rs7.6 billion ($92 million) on its stake in Head Digital Works.
Delta Corp wrote down Rs3.8 billion ($46 million) across its holdings in Deltatech, Head Digital Works and OpenPlay Technologies.
Fintech and payment partners also experience strain
The impact has spilled over to the financial-technology ecosystem. Paytm’s net profit fell 98 percent after recording an impairment of Rs1.9 billion ($23 million) tied to First Games Technology.
Mobikwik saw an eightfold rise in losses, reaching Rs286 million ($3.4 million), while operating revenue declined 7 percent year-on-year.
According to NPCI data, UPI transactions linked to gaming plunged from 351 million in July to 270 million in August.
Within days of the bill’s passage major RMG platforms including Dream11, MPL, Zupee, WinZO and Gameskraft suspended all cash-gaming formats. Messaging platform Hike shut down its RMG app Rush entirely.
