Gaming
AA Gaming launches AA Play: India’s ultimate all-in-one gaming platform
Mumbai: AA Gaming launches AA Play, a revolutionary gaming and esports platform designed for gamers across India. The app brings together esports tournaments, community building, and digital commerce, all in one place, offering a comprehensive solution to the growing needs of the gaming ecosystem.
Developed by industry veterans, AA Play is crafted to cater to hardcore and mid-core skill-based gamers. The app will offer exciting competitions, foster connections among players, and eventually support an in-app marketplace, reshaping how gamers in India engage with each other and with games.
At launch, the app focuses on two core areas:
1. Tournaments: AA Play will provide free esports tournaments, giving players a chance to compete and win big. Aspiring esports athletes can now find regular competitions across various titles, helping them hone their skills and potentially go pro.
2. Community Building: Players can form or join communities, connecting with like-minded individuals for collaboration, meetups, and shared experiences.
A digital marketplace is planned for future updates, where gamers can purchase gaming merchandise and in-game items through a secure, user-friendly digital wallet, further enhancing the seamless gaming experience.
AA Gaming, founder and CEO, Akash Dhangar expressed his enthusiasm: “With AA Play, we are gearing up to revolutionize the gaming experience, bringing everything a gamer needs—competing, connecting, and shopping – into one exciting platform! As India’s gaming industry explodes, we’re thrilled to be at the forefront, offering a one-stop solution that puts the power in players’ hands. In the past, we focused on third-party and white-label B2B services, but this app marks a bold turning point. We’re making a giant leap towards a direct-to-consumer model, opening up incredible opportunities for innovation and new revenue streams. This is our vision for a super app that unites all things gaming in one place.”
India’s gaming industry is rapidly growing, with projections estimating it will reach a value of $1.4 billion by 2028. By then, India is expected to surpass China in the number of gamers, with a total of 730.7 million players. AA Play launches at a pivotal time to engage both new and returning gamers, contributing to the booming Indian gaming ecosystem.
Gaming
MTG gaming chief Benninghoff joins NODWIN board as esports firm primes for IPO
The Gurugram-based esports firm is pursuing a public listing, has returned to profitability and is growing revenues by 42 per cent
GURUGRAM: NODWIN Gaming is moving fast. The Gurugram-based gaming and esports company has launched a pre-IPO fundraising round, appointed UBS as lead adviser for both the round and a subsequent public listing, and landed a heavyweight board director, all in one go.
The new board member is Arnd Benninghoff, executive vice president of gaming at Stockholm-listed Modern Times Group (MTG), who has overseen the group’s strategic investments and portfolio growth since 2014. He is no stranger to building things: Benninghoff has founded and built fifteen companies, served as chief digital officer at ProSiebenSat.1 Media AG, managing director of SevenVentures, and chief executive of Holtzbrinck eLAB. He began his career as a journalist at Deutsche Presse Agentur and various TV networks, holds a Diplom-Kaufmann in business and administration from the University of Münster, and previously sat on the board of Edgeware AB.
The numbers back the ambition
NODWIN is not pitching a story without substance. The company has returned to EBITDA profitability and posted a 42 per cent year-on-year revenue surge, reaching $58.5m in the first nine months of FY2026. The pre-IPO round will combine a primary issuance to fund global expansion through organic growth and acquisitions, alongside a secondary sale to give existing shareholders some liquidity.
Akshat Rathee, co-founder and managing director of NODWIN Gaming, said Benninghoff understands “the entire lifecycle of the gaming and media ecosystem, from the boots-on-the-ground reality of building startups to the strategic complexity of managing multi-billion dollar global portfolios.”
Benninghoff, for his part, said the company “sits at the intersection of sports, entertainment, and technology, making it one of the most exciting players in the global gaming landscape today.”
A portfolio built for the global south
Founded in 2014 by Rathee and Gautam Virk, NODWIN has quietly assembled one of the more compelling esports portfolios outside the Western hemisphere. Its properties include DreamHack India and Comic Con India, and it recently acquired StarLadder, the Ukraine-based tournament organiser behind premier events in CS:GO and Dota 2. The company also serves as a long-term strategic marketing partner for the Evolution Championship Series (EVO), the world’s most prominent fighting game tournament, helping push it into new geographies.
Its geographic focus spans South Asia, Central Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Backers include Nazara Technologies, KRAFTON, Sony Group Corporation, JetSynthesys, and the founders’ investment vehicle Good Game Investments.
What comes next
With UBS running the books, a board freshly reinforced with European media and gaming expertise, and revenue heading in the right direction, NODWIN is laying the groundwork deliberately. The esports industry has burned investors before with big promises and thin margins. NODWIN’s return to profitability, combined with a real portfolio of owned intellectual properties across gaming, music and youth culture, gives it a more credible runway than most. The IPO clock is now ticking.
