Tale of the Tape 

Hola Amigos!

Markets continued their winning streak with the Nifty and Sensex ending up +0.3% each. Midcaps (+0.4%) and Smallcaps (+0.3%) saw buying too, lifting overall broader markets. The advance-decline ratio was evenly split.

Most sectors ended in the green. IT (+2.7%) led the rally, followed by FMCG (+1.4%) and Real Estate (+1.1%).  Pharma (-0.4%) and Banks (-0.3%) saw small cuts.

In today’s issue of the Daily Rip, we look at why Nazara cracked a whopping -13%, two new IPOs, the top newsmakers and more.

Check out the NSE 500 heatmap:

Stock
Game Over

Nazara Technologies tanked -13% after the GOI moved a bill to ban all online money games! The proposed law is a huge setback for the nearly ~$4 billion gaming sector with implications for some listed stocks. Here’s what you need to know. 

The fineprint: The GOI wants to outlaw any online game where a user pays a fee or deposits money to play with the expectation of winning cash. It doesn’t matter if the game is ‘skill-based’ or depends on chance (aka gambling), this bill will affect everything from online poker & rummy to fantasy sports where you pool in money and then win cash prizes based on your performance.

The biggest loser today was Nazara Tech. For the unaware, the company actually gets no revenue from real money gaming. But it does have a Rs 805 cr investment in PokerBaazi, with an option lined up to invest another Rs 250 cr. In the worst-case scenario, Nazara might have to write-off the full investment; to put that in context, the company reported revenue of Rs 192 cr in Q1FY26. So that would basically wipe out a year’s topline! That said, CEO Nitish Mittersain points out they will need to look at the bill first to assess the impact. There’s also the possibility of taking PokerBaazi into other markets. But until Nazara figures it out, there will be a big overhang.

For those wondering,  DeltaCorp is a lot less affected, which is why it is in the green today. The company mostly makes its money from its offshore casinos (~86% of FY24 revenue), which aren’t covered by this law. It does have a small online skill gaming vertical, but even that has reduced in recent months when it effectively sold its A23 online poker biz.

TL;DR: Online games that are played with money -- no matter whether they are chance (gambling) or skill (cards/fantasy sports) -- could be banned. If it does become a law, there will be court cases no doubt. But until then keep a close eye out on this one.

Specials
Ashish Kacholia Portfolio Changes

With ₹2,600+ Cr across more than 40 stocks, Ashish Kacholia’s portfolio is full of interesting picks. In our latest video, we dive into his top holdings, new stock picks, and major portfolio changes this quarter.