All Things Policy India’s Ban on Online Real Money Gaming
Sep 10, 2025
Anwesha Sen, a tech policy program manager and AI governance researcher, dives into India's sweeping ban on online real money gaming. The conversation highlights the ban's impact on the multi-billion dollar industry, discussing potential job losses and market regulation issues. They explore the rise of unregulated offshore platforms and the risk of a burgeoning black market. Sen emphasizes the importance of informed regulation over outright prohibition, questioning the motivations behind the ban and advocating for a balanced approach to policy.
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Blanket Ban Removes Skill-Chance Distinction
- The new law bans all online real-money games in India, collapsing the skill-vs-chance distinction previously used to allow some gaming.
- This blanket approach criminalizes platforms, advertisers, and payment facilitators while exempting non-monetary games.
Ban Threatens A Growing Sunrise Industry
- India's online gaming sector was a sunrise industry with strong growth, high employment, and significant FDI tied to real-money games.
- The ban threatens jobs, investment, tax revenue and pushes users toward unregulated offshore platforms, reducing oversight.
Enforcement May Expand The Black Market
- Enforcement risks pushing players to riskier offshore or VPN-accessed platforms where fraud and money laundering are harder to monitor.
- Harms like addiction and financial fraud will persist or worsen outside regulated channels.