Next to a primary school and a shabby playground in India’s financial capital Mumbai stands a plush four-storey building that is home to the world’s newest breed of gamer.
More than 20 young “streamers” in residence spend their day playing video games, practising for televised e-sports tournaments that draw in millions of viewers.
Equipped with bunk beds, cubicles and a kitchen with a full-time chef, the gaming house is one of many popping up around the country — a testament to the explosive growth of an industry that is attracting investment from around the world.
“We eat, sleep and play under the same roof,” said Animesh Agarwal, founder of Mumbai content creator and gaming talent management company S8UL.
“When we play big-ticket tournaments, it’s all about the mental play. We need to bring teams together to build trust.”
While still in its infancy compared with the US, China and Japan, investors are betting on huge growth in Indian e-sports — powered by one of the world’s youngest populations and cheap mobile data.
Tournaments are attracting huge prime-time television audiences, while thousands pack into arenas to watch teams play shooter games on their mobile phones, with the action beamed on to giant screens.
Dubai e-sports company Galaxy Racer joined up with one of Asia’s largest music festivals Sunburn to host a three-day tournament, which started on Friday, in the city of Hyderabad, where players of the first-person hero shooter game Valorant will compete for a prize pool of $100,000.
“India’s growing middle class will have more disposable income, which they will spend on entertainment of their choice,” said Akshat Rathee, managing director of Nodwin Gaming, which organised the three-week Battlegrounds Mobile India Masters Series tournament earlier this year.
“These eyeballs are going to be worth a lot of money.”
The industry was jolted in July when India’s government demanded the Battlegrounds game be removed from app stores. But investors and gamers seem unfazed by the disruption and the potential for more regulatory action, figuring the order was aimed at a Chinese-backed firm and there are plenty of other blockbuster titles to fill the void.
“Our revenue has only gone up after the game was taken away,” said Rohit Jagasia, the founder of Revenant e-sports, whose teams play a range of titles and announced a sponsorship deal from sportswear brand Puma in October.
The industry, excluding real money gaming, is expected to grow to $4 billion by the fiscal year ending March 2027, from $1.1bn in 2022, according to gaming-focused venture capital fund Lumikai. India was the largest consumer of mobile games in the world this fiscal year, topping China and the US with 15 billion downloads, it said.
Investor interest remains strong, even after the government action against Battlegrounds, said Lumikai’s founding general partner Salone Sehgal. “Investors care about the long-term picture, and that is still intact,” she said.
Mobile Global e-sports, a US company that runs India’s biggest university e-sports competition with more than 400 teams, raised $6.75 million in an initial public offering on the Nasdaq exchange in July.
“It’s very clear that all components for a successful capitalistic venture with extreme upside exists here,” said Richard Whelan, founder of Mogo.
Unlike other gaming markets where play is console- or PC-based, Indian users access live-streams mainly through their mobile devices. Thanks to cheap data from wireless carriers such as Reliance Jio Infocomm, India is among the highest mobile data users in the world. The nation will have 1 billion smartphone users by 2026, from 750 million last year, according to Deloitte.
The roll-out of 5G in India will give gaming a boost, according to Sean Hyunil Sohn, the chief executive of Krafton India, whose South Korean parent-created hit video game PUBG: Battlegrounds, and the Indian version Battlegrounds Mobile.
“When 5G is established, we will have much more resources to deploy more games into the Indian market,” said Mr Sohn.
Back in the gaming house, the financial rewards are clear.
Salman Ahmad, 29, quit his job as a tech assistant at Google in New Delhi to be a full-time gamer. He now earns more than 1 million rupees ($12,000) a month, several times more than his Google salary, playing for S8UL.
Clad in stylish shades and designer clothing, he has cultivated a personal brand to generate revenue streams that include brand endorsements from Chinese mobile giant Redmi to Indian skincare company Mamaearth.
“Gaming has given everything to me,” said Mr Ahmad, whose player name is Mamba. “I used to play games till 4am during my engineering days — now I am supporting my family with it.”
Saloni Pawar, 23, is one of a growing number of women gamers, though, does not play for S8UL or reside in its training house. She was the first woman to represent India internationally and helped her team to second in a tournament in Thailand in 2019.
“My parents have told me to do more ‘girlie’ things and not sit at home playing games,” said Ms Pawar, who has almost 61,000 YouTube subscribers and has collaborated with brands such as LG and Asus. “But once money started flowing in, they turned supportive.”
Gaming has given everything to me. I used to play games till 4am during my engineering days — now I am supporting my family with it
Salman Ahmad,
player for S8UL
The industry does face some difficulties, not least the fact that e-sports are not officially recognised as a sport — making it more difficult for players to gain visas to take part in international tournaments.
There needs to be a clear distinction between e-sports that require skill, and other online “games of chance” such as rummy or poker, according to Lokesh Suji, director of the e-sports Federation of India.
The government action against Battlegrounds Mobile has also fuelled uncertainty for developers, according to Rishi Alwani, communications manager and writer at SuperGaming. “The concern is not whether this a permanent ban or not, it’s about the lack of clarity,” he said.
There has been no official government comment on the decision to remove the battle royale shooter game from app stores, although industry participants suspect concerns over data privacy. India’s technology ministry did not respond to requests for comment.
Meanwhile, Mr Rathee of Nodwin Gaming has big ambitions, and draws parallels to the Indian Premier League. Media rights for the IPL, one of the world’s most-watched sporting events, sold for more than $6bn in June — making the competition more expensive to broadcast than English top-flight football.
“We want to do to gaming what IPL did to Indian cricket,” he said.
TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
Winners
Best Men's Player of the Year: Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Maradona Award for Best Goal Scorer of the Year: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
TikTok Fans’ Player of the Year: Robert Lewandowski
Top Goal Scorer of All Time: Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
Best Women's Player of the Year: Alexia Putellas (Barcelona)
Best Men's Club of the Year: Chelsea
Best Women's Club of the Year: Barcelona
Best Defender of the Year: Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus/Italy)
Best Goalkeeper of the Year: Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG/Italy)
Best Coach of the Year: Roberto Mancini (Italy)
Best National Team of the Year: Italy
Best Agent of the Year: Federico Pastorello
Best Sporting Director of the Year: Txiki Begiristain (Manchester City)
Player Career Award: Ronaldinho
MORE ON TURKEY'S SYRIA OFFENCE
Disposing of non-recycleable masks
Use your ‘black bag’ bin at home
Do not put them in a recycling bin
Take them home with you if there is no litter bin
- No need to bag the mask
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
INFO
What: DP World Tour Championship
When: November 21-24
Where: Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai
Tickets: www.ticketmaster.ae.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
More coverage from the Future Forum
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Fines for littering
In Dubai:
Dh200 for littering or spitting in the Dubai Metro
Dh500 for throwing cigarette butts or chewing gum on the floor, or littering from a vehicle.
Dh1,000 for littering on a beach, spitting in public places, throwing a cigarette butt from a vehicle
In Sharjah and other emirates
Dh500 for littering - including cigarette butts and chewing gum - in public places and beaches in Sharjah
Dh2,000 for littering in Sharjah deserts
Dh500 for littering from a vehicle in Ras Al Khaimah
Dh1,000 for littering from a car in Abu Dhabi
Dh1,000 to Dh100,000 for dumping waste in residential or public areas in Al Ain
Dh10,000 for littering at Ajman's beaches
