Dream11 parent Dream Sports says no layoffs despite revenue crash after real-money gaming ban
Dream Sports, the parent of fantasy gaming giant Dream11, has ruled out layoffs even after India’s ban on real-money gaming wiped out nearly all of its revenues.
“95% of Dream11’s revenues have disappeared overnight, and 100% of our profits,” co-founder and CEO Harsh Jain told Moneycontrol. But he insisted jobs are safe. “We are not interested in doing any layoffs. All the talent here is safe.”
The government’s new Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, passed earlier this month, has criminalised money-based online games, with penalties of up to five years in prison. The move forced Dream11 to shut down its core offering and also give up its title sponsorship deal with the Indian cricket team.
Jain said the company’s focus now is to build new products. Dream Sports will redeploy around 500 engineers across its existing businesses — FanCode, DreamSetGo, Dream Game Studios and Dream Money — while exploring AI-driven ventures in sports content, commerce, fan engagement and performance analytics.
“We will start again to solve these problems for Indian sports fans,” Jain said, pointing to the opportunities AI could create in merchandise, content, and fan experiences. He added that Dream Sports has enough cash reserves to sustain operations and staff for at least two years.
The company also has a unit, called Dreamsuite, that is experimenting with a new financial services app, Dream Money. The agency also reported that the app is also available for daily gold purchases starting at ₹10 and fixed deposits from ₹1,000 though it is still at a pilot stage.
Despite the real-money gaming business being closed, Dream Sports is still running its sports travel platform Dream Set Go, content and ticketing arm FanCode, gaming studio Dream Game Studios and non-profit Dream Sports Foundation.