Nazara Tech announces Rs 196 crore investment to drive growth across gaming and entertainment

Mumbai-based gaming and esports company Nazara Technologies Limited has announced a series of investments totalling Rs 196 crore aimed at driving growth across its gaming and entertainment verticals.

"Nazara is committed to building the largest diversified gaming and entertainment platform out of India and many of our initiatives announced today are geared towards propelling profitable growth in these strategic areas of our interest," said Nitish Mittersain.

Key investments and acquisitions

Nazara has expanded into physical entertainment by acquiring a 60% stake in Funky Monkeys Play Centers Private Limited, a chain of indoor play centres for children, for Rs 43.7 crore.

Funky Monkeys operates 11 centres across cities such as Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Chennai, offering interactive play environments.

Co-founders of Funky Monkeys, Binita Putcha and Sanjay Ghadiali, said: “We are excited to join hands with Nazara, whose vision for digital and hybrid entertainment aligns closely with ours. With Nazara’s expertise and resources, we are confident we can scale Funky Monkeys and bring even more joy to children and families across India. We also see synergies with digital IPs owned by Nazara, such as Kiddopi, and will work to maximise these opportunities”

In addition, Nazara is venturing into the edtech space with a Rs 4.2 crore investment for a 4.7% stake in LearnTube.ai, an AI-powered learning platform that caters to over 2 million users.

LearnTube offers gamified professional learning experiences, aligning with Nazara’s focus on interactive and engaging content.

"LearnTube’s collaboration with Nazara is a bold step forward in reshaping professional learning and interactive media. We are excited to combine forces to lead innovation on a global scale," said Shronit Ladhani, Co-founder of LearnTube.

Strengthening existing subsidiaries

Nazara will invest Rs 64 crore through subscription of Optionally Convertible Preference Shares to bolster Nodwin’s growth. The funds will support Nodwins expansion, enhance its intellectual properties (IPs), and strengthen its footprint in emerging markets.

The company will invest Rs 69 crore to purchase shares arising from exercise of ESOPs from the Sportskeeda management to increase its stake to 100% in the company making it a wholly owned subsidiary.

Additionally, It has granted in-principle approval for an investment of Rs 15 crore in Datawrkz through the subscription of Compulsorily Convertible Cumulative Preference Shares to support the ongoing growth of Datawrkz.