Delta Corp, Nazara shares crash after GST council announces 28% GST for online gaming

Shares of Delta Corp and Nazara Technologies plunged after the GST council announced a 28% tax levy on online gaming, casinos and horse racing. The GST will be applied on the full face value which is the entire bet money.

Goa based Casino operator Delta Corp opened 10% lower continuing to decline through the day. Intra-day the stock plunged 28%, however closed 23% lower at Rs 189.65.

The shares of digital gaming and e-sports firm Nazara Technologies also tanked 14% earlier in the day. However, it managed to recover most of its losses and closed at Rs 683 down about 3.5%. This, after it clarified that skill-based real money gaming business contributed only 5.2% of its FY23 revenues.

“To the extent required, the company will proactively take steps to mitigate any potential impact to this segment of our business, and we anticipate minimal impact to our overall revenues,” Nazara Technologies said.

Meanwhile, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman assured that the intention was not to hurt the industry. However, the industry has strongly criticised the decision calling it a "catastrophic blow".