Microsoft seeks to invest $100Mn in Zupee

Microsoft is reportedly planning to invest in the Indian gaming startup Zupee. The tech giant has held talks to potentially lead an investment round of over $100 million in the play-to-win gaming platform.

The report further stated that if the deal gets finalized, it would help Microsoft to expand its business as Zupee is likely to use the software giant’s Azure and other cloud services as part of the agreement. Zupee operates as a “skill-based casual gaming” platform.

Dilsher Singh, Founder & CEO, Zupee, said, “Indian smartphone exports are expected to increase from USD 3.6 billion in 2020-21 to USD 55 billion in 2025-26 which is a 15x growth. As a home-grown start-up, we want to put Indian products and games on all those devices that can take the India story to the world.”

Zupee recently announced a partnership with Jio Platforms Limited, that will allow them to roll out games in more languages. The company said that it will use the funds to develop more products, and enhance user experiences. It also wants to break into new territories. In exchange, Zupee will distribute all of its games on Jio and Jio Phone customers for no additional cost.

Zupee has garnered over 70 million downloads across board games such as ludo, snakes and ladder, and playing cards and carrom.