Nazara Technologies completes Rs 855 Cr fundraise through preferential share allotment

Nazara Technologies has secured a Rs 854.99 crore cash infusion by allotting nearly 90 lakh new shares to investors.

Among the notable investors were SBI Innovative Opportunities Fund, Junomoneta Finsol Private Limited, and Think India Opportunities Master Fund LP.

The Nikhil Kamath-backed company held a board meeting in September this year to seek approval for the fundraise.

Nazara Technologies had planned to use part of the funds raised to acquire an additional 19.35% stake in its subsidiary, Absolute Sports Private Limited, the owner of the sports platform Sportskeeda. This involves purchasing 41,173 shares from existing shareholders for Rs 145.47 crore. The payment was split evenly, with half made in cash and the other half through issuing Nazara's own shares.

The company reported mixed results for the second quarter of FY25. Revenue from operations grew by 7.3% year-over-year to Rs 318.94 crore, driven by a 9.3% increase in gaming revenue to Rs 114.05 crore and a 5.7% rise in esports revenue to Rs 181.76 crore.

However, total expenses climbed 11.4% to Rs 321.27 crore due to a sharp 52.9% rise in content, event, and web server costs to Rs 129.52 crore, alongside a 38.2% increase in employee expenses to Rs 67.64 crore.

These rising costs led to a 32.8% decline in profit, which fell to Rs 16.24 crore compared to Rs 24.18 crore in the same period last year.