Paytm

Paytm targets number 1 fantasy sports status in India

Having rebranded its gaming platform from Gamepind to FirstGames, parent company Paytm has set about delivering India’s number one fantasy sports destination.

The fintech firm is also looking to raise $30 million to fund the continued expansion of the platform – a joint venture with AGTech Holdings Limited.

Despite only launching in February 2018, it reached over 30 million users and 100 million game plays in May, before launching fantasy cricket – Paytm First Captains – to coincide with the start of the ICC Cricket World Cup in England from 30 May.

Competing with products such as the $1.1 billion valued Tencent-backed Dream 11, it has already been a huge success, with transactions growing by five times for the month, while the payment rate (payer/total user) for these transactions is said to be more than twice as high as that of other products in the market.

Paytm First Captains has targeted a total of one million players with a gross merchandise volume (GMV) of $4-5 million for the tournament, which concludes at Lords on 14 July.

There are about 20 million fantasy gamers in India right now, according to a joint report by the Indian Federation of Sports Gaming (IFSG) and KPMG, up from just 2 million in 2016.

The same report has projected that the Indian fantasy sports market touches $5 billion in the next two years, with IFSG estimating that 100 million will take to one or more of the country’s platforms/apps by the end of 2019.

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