Nodwin Gaming acquires Turkey-based esports firm Ninja Global

Esports firm Nodwin Gaming on Wednesday said it was acquiring Istanbul-based esports and gaming firm Ninja Global FZCO.

Nodwin did not disclose the consideration for the 100% acquisition of the latter. Ninja Global conducts tournaments, broadcasts and other esports-related activities across Turkey and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

The acquisition will help Nodwin “enhance the company's existing capabilities to offer solutions to publishers and brands in the Middle East and the Turkey region,” the firm said in a statement. On October 6, Nodwin had fully acquired game marketing agency Publishme, which focuses on West Asia and Turkey, for $2 million.


The latest acquisition “also readies Nodwin Gaming to expand to Central Asia, where the mobile games market is experiencing rapid growth,” the firm added in a statement.

Nodwin is a subsidiary of listed gaming and media firm Nazara Technologies, where it is the largest revenue driver of the parent firm. For the quarter ended December, Nodwin brought in Rs 134 crore in revenue. However, the division registered a negative earnings before tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) of Rs 2 crore, said Nitish Mittersain, cofounder and chief executive of Nazara Technologies.

At the time, Mittersain had told ET that the parent firm was “not pushing for margins for Nodwin” as the firm believes that “it is a business with a very large growth opportunity, and we would prefer an aggressive growth stance for the near future for this division”.

On January 24, Nodwin had fully acquired events firm Comic Con India at a valuation of Rs 55 crore through a combination of cash and share swap.

For the December quarter, parent Nazara Technologies saw its profit after tax grow 47% on-year to Rs 29 crore, while revenue grew by 2% to Rs 320 crore. Nazara’s esports division, which includes businesses like Nodwin and sports news firm Sportskeeda, contributed 55% of the firm’s overall revenue in the nine months ended December.