In a ground-breaking move, Metaverse and gaming tech company OneVerse has acquired Spartan Poker – India’s premier poker platform. Additionally, the company has unveiled a whopping $120 million investment plan for mergers and acquisitions (M & A) targeting real money gaming (RMG) firms in India.
Backed by family offices and its founder’s capital, OneVerse plans to invest in an impressive 13 RMG companies across poker, rummy and fantasy gaming in the next three months, the company’s chief executive told Economic Times.
“The recent macroeconomic headwinds have unlocked momentum for M&A opportunities and the company is looking to close a few additional acquisitions in the next three months,” Paul Michael, CEO of OneVerse Gaming told Economic Times.
He also stated that their company would further be expanding business in the Europe and America market as well.
“With this large M&A round, we want to create a scale which is able to sustain in the long run with proper strategies on player retention while also creating meaningful value for the gaming house,” Michael said.
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He also mentioned that the gaming industry has seen a 15% reduction in users who have given up gaming because of the high taxation impact. The company is receiving advice from Rand Merchant Bank, a renowned global corporate and investment bank, registered in India as RMB Capital India Private Limited.
India has over 568 million online gaming users, with nearly 25% of them engaging in pay-and-play. In the fiscal year 2023, the RMG segment in online gaming was valued at around $2 billion industry.
This acquisition move comes at a very crucial time when the whole Indian gaming industry is facing high taxation and customer retention challenges. About six months before this acquisition, Spartan Poker had laid off over 40% of its workforce due to the government’s 28% GST, which was implemented in October for real-money gaming companies.
Amin Rozani, Spartan Poker founder CEO said, “We are thrilled to be part of OneVerse’s journey. This acquisition opens up new horizons for creativity and technological advancements, and we look forward to creating extraordinary customer gaming experiences together.”
Following the hike in GST for online gaming, casinos and horse racing, the RMG business model has almost become unsustainable for several start ups and mid sized companies. Big players like Dream11 and Games 24X7 have continued subsidizing the new tax liability through attractive bonuses and deposit offers to retain users.
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Source: ET & ENTRACKR
