PokerBaazi
PokerBaazi is an India-based, Kolkata-headquartered online poker operator founded in 2014 that serves individual poker enthusiasts via iOS, Android and web apps and has pivoted from real-money gaming to a free-to-play social poker model with a paid Baazi Select subscription.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersKolkata, India
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingSoftware
What PokerBaazi does
PokerBaazi is an India-based online poker operator founded in 2014 and headquartered in Kolkata, serving individual poker enthusiasts across the country. Its core product is a multi-format online poker platform available on iOS, Android and the web, offering Tournaments, No Limit Hold'em, Pot Limit Omaha, All-In or Fold, SuperHold'em and Open Face Poker formats, with a Reward Points engagement system layered on top.
Historically a real-money gaming operator, PokerBaazi was forced to restructure after India's Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act (PROGA) 2025 banned real-money online gaming effective October 2025. The company subsequently relaunched as a free-to-play social poker platform and introduced Baazi Select, a paid premium subscription membership that anchors its current recurring-revenue model.
PokerBaazi operates with a 51-100 employee base and is a private company. Beyond Baazi Select, the input does not disclose additional revenue lines, third-party partnerships, funding history, or material M&A activity. The company is also navigating reputational and legal exposure from a payment gateway hacking incident connected to the Karnataka Bitcoin scam, which is a concurrent compliance and brand overhang on the post-pivot business.
PokerBaazi firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- PokerBaazi
- Legal name
- PokerBaazi
- Website
- https://pokerbaazi.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- PokerBaazi is an India-based, Kolkata-headquartered online poker operator founded in 2014 that serves individual poker enthusiasts via iOS, Android and web apps and has pivoted from real-money gaming to a free-to-play social poker model with a paid Baazi Select subscription.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
PokerBaazi industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Online Poker Gaming
- NAICS
- Amusement Arcades (71312)
- SIC
- Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Sweepstakes/Free-to-Play & Social Poker Apps (MPAEAEAD)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Sweepstakes / Social Casinos (Virtual Currency, Prize-Based) (MPAEABAE)
Keywords
Where PokerBaazi is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Kolkata
- HQ country
- India
- HQ region
- Asia
Markets served
PokerBaazi business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Free-to-Play Social Poker: PokerBaazi transitioned to a free-to-play model following India's 2025 real-money gaming ban. The platform generates engagement through a reward points system where players earn points through gameplay and redeem them for rewards. Revenue generation mechanism not explicitly disclosed in current iteration.
- Baazi Select Premium Subscription: Premium membership tier offering exclusive benefits including ad-free play, enhanced stats, premium support, and exclusive reward store access.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Free tier with earnable Reward Points |
| Subscription | Monthly | Baazi Select Premium Membership |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels3 records
PokerBaazi product offering
Product offeringCore offering
PokerBaazi is a free-to-play social poker platform available on iOS, Android, and web, where users play poker with virtual Free Chips across multiple formats (Tournaments, No Limit Hold'em, All-In or Fold, SuperHold'em, PLO, Open Face Poker). Players earn Reward Points through gameplay that can be redeemed in an in-app Rewards Store for gadgets, vouchers, and surprise drops, and a premium Baazi Select membership offers ad-free play, HUD stats, Poker TV access, and exclusive rewards.
Product overview
PokerBaazi is a free-to-play social poker application available on iOS, Android, and web platforms. Originally a real-money gaming platform, it pivoted to a free-to-play-only model following India's Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act (PROGA), 2025 which banned real-money online gaming. The product portfolio centers on the main PokerBaazi app, which offers various poker formats (No Limit Hold'em, All-In or Fold, SuperHold'em, PLO, Open Face Poker), tournament play, and a rewards ecosystem with the Baazi Select premium membership providing exclusive benefits such as ad-free play, premium support, and access to members-only reward store items.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- PokerBaazi Social Poker App A free-to-play social poker mobile and web application for adult entertainment purposes, offering multiple poker formats (Tournaments, No Limit Hold'em, All-In or Fold, SuperHold'em, PLO, Open Face Poker) with virtual chips, reward points redeemable for gadgets and vouchers, and tournament play. Targeted at individual poker enthusiasts aged 18+ in India.
- Baazi Select Premium Membership
Companies that use PokerBaazi
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
PokerBaazi technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
PokerBaazi partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators3 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights3 records
PokerBaazi competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Mobile Premier League (MPL): MPL is India's largest mobile esports and casual gaming aggregator, offering multiple skill-based games including card and board games to a free-to-play and real-money audience. It is broader than PokerBaazi but a key competitive reference for poker game experiences inside a multi-game free-to-play platform.
- Nazara Technologies: Nazara Technologies is a publicly listed Indian gaming publisher with interests spanning sports, casual, and skill gaming - and was grouped with PokerBaazi as a major name in the pre-ban real-money gaming sector. As a broad incumbent spanning published titles and gaming investments in India, it offers a useful public-market comparable.
- PokerStars: PokerStars is the world's largest online poker brand, operating a free-to-play and real-money product across regulated international markets. While it does not serve Indian customers, its freemium + subscription + Stars Rewards economy is the global reference implementation for the monetization model PokerBaazi is now pursuing.
- Games24x7: Games24x7 is an Indian gaming operator running multiple skill-based platforms (including My11Circle fantasy sports and RummyCircle) that were directly affected by PROGA 2025. It is a broad incumbent in the same regulatory and consumer environment in which PokerBaazi now operates.
- Dream11 (Dream Sports): Dream11 / Dream Sports was the largest Indian real-money fantasy sports operator pre-PROGA and has navigated the same regulatory ban as PokerBaazi. It shares regulatory exposure, Indian consumer targeting, and skill-gaming category positioning, though its product focus is fantasy sports rather than poker.
Direct peers
- Adda52: Adda52 is one of India's leading real-money online poker platforms and PokerBaazi's closest direct competitor, operating the same NLH/PLO tournament and cash-game formats for Indian players. Both brands have navigated the same PROGA 2025 regulatory shock, making them the most relevant like-for-like peer on category, geography, and post-pivot trajectory.
- Zupee: Zupee is an Indian skill-gaming platform that, like PokerBaazi, was named among India's major real-money gaming operators before being impacted by the 2025 ban and pivoting business model. The parallel makes Zupee a structurally comparable peer operating in the same regulatory and category context.
- Spartan Poker: Spartan Poker is another major Indian online poker operator offering the same set of poker variants and tournament structures to Indian consumers. Like PokerBaazi, it has had to respond to India's 2025 real-money gaming ban, making it a tightly comparable peer in category, geography, and regulatory exposure.
- A23 (Ace2Three / Taj Express): A23, operated by Head Digital Works, is one of India's longest-running online skill-card-game platforms offering poker and rummy to Indian consumers. It shares poker-specific category overlap with PokerBaazi and was directly impacted by the same 2025 regulatory shift affecting real-money gaming.
Emerging players
- WinZO: WinZO is an Indian social gaming platform hosting 100+ casual and skill-based games, including card variants, with a viral and tournament-driven model. It competes for the same free-to-play gamer attention budget as PokerBaazi and represents an emerging-player benchmark for social poker style experiences in India.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
PokerBaazi social profiles
Digital presencePokerBaazi financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
PokerBaazi leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
PokerBaazi funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
PokerBaazi M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about PokerBaazi
What does PokerBaazi do?
PokerBaazi is a free-to-play social poker platform available on iOS, Android, and web, where users play poker with virtual Free Chips across multiple formats (Tournaments, No Limit Hold'em, All-In or Fold, SuperHold'em, PLO, Open Face Poker). Players earn Reward Points through gameplay that can be redeemed in an in-app Rewards Store for gadgets, vouchers, and surprise drops, and a premium Baazi Select membership offers ad-free play, HUD stats, Poker TV access, and exclusive rewards.
Is PokerBaazi a public or private company?
PokerBaazi is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was PokerBaazi founded?
PokerBaazi was founded in 2014. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is PokerBaazi based?
PokerBaazi is headquartered in Kolkata, India, in the Asia region.
How does PokerBaazi make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Free-to-Play Social Poker is the primary driver. The others are baazi Select Premium Subscription.
Who are PokerBaazi's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Mobile Premier League (MPL), Nazara Technologies, PokerStars, Games24x7 and Dream11 (Dream Sports). Direct peers are Adda52, Zupee, Spartan Poker and A23 (Ace2Three / Taj Express). WinZO is listed as an emerging player.
Does PokerBaazi have an API?
No public API is recorded for PokerBaazi.
What industry is PokerBaazi in?
PokerBaazi's product category is Online Poker Gaming. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAEAEAD, Sweepstakes/Free-to-Play & Social Poker Apps, with a secondary code of MPAEABAE, Sweepstakes / Social Casinos (Virtual Currency, Prize-Based). Its NAICS code is 71312 and its SIC code is 7900.