RMG ban sparks offshore betting advert blitz; reductions and doubtful movie star advertisements

India’s sweeping ban on real-money gaming has triggered unintended penalties: offshore playing and betting operators are showering Indian customers with aggressive promotions and reductions. Industry insiders say the crackdown has successfully handed the market over to unlawful corporations who’ve lengthy operated within the shadows.

In the times following the ban, platforms equivalent to JackBit, 1xBet, Parimatch, Odds96, and 4RaBet have unleashed a blitz of digital advertising campaigns focusing on Indian customers. The gives are staggering by any normal—JackBit rolled out a 500 % bonus on deposits as little as ₹35, whereas 1xBet dangled a 120 % first-deposit bonus of as much as ₹33,000.

Parimatch is selling 100–150 % reductions, Odds96 is making a gift of ₹150 in free credit only for signing up, and 4RaBet has gone additional, providing a large 700 % low cost on its portfolio of video games, together with chance-based titles equivalent to Aviator, JetX, Chicken Road, and Astronaut.

At the identical time, faux AI-generated movie star endorsements proceed to floor throughout social media platforms, that includes outstanding Indian movie stars and sports activities icons urging customers to enroll. These fabricated advertisements—slickly produced and troublesome for common customers to determine as fraudulent—lend an air of legitimacy to offshore betting platforms that stay outdoors India’s regulatory and tax internet.

A senior govt at a now-shuttered Indian real-money gaming firm didn’t mince phrases. “The offshore betting and gambling companies are celebrating the demise of legitimate Indian gaming firms who always opposed them. They do not pay any taxes, they pump heavy money into digital platforms to lure Indians, and now with domestic operators gone, there’s no real competition left. This was bound to happen,” he stated.

Industry insiders argue that the federal government’s resolution has created the very state of affairs Indian regulators claimed they wished to keep away from: driving customers towards unregulated, offshore platforms that pose larger monetary and social dangers.

“The government is not capable of tackling the menace of illegal gambling platforms. Instead, it has axed the legitimate skill gaming companies who paid taxes and generated revenues for the state,” stated one other founder. “This is a classic case of punishing the compliant while rewarding the illegal.”

For years, India’s home real-money gaming sector—which included massive gamers in fantasy sports activities and skill-based contests—argued that they offered a safer and controlled ability based mostly video games not like offshore betting platforms that are fully probability based mostly. Legitimate RMG corporations operated below taxation frameworks, employed lakhs of individuals, and contributed considerably to authorities revenues. According to trade estimates, the sector generated round 2 Lakh jobs and contributed hundreds of crores in taxes yearly.

Industry our bodies had raised crimson flags properly earlier than the regulation was enacted. The All India Gaming Federation (AIGF), Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports (FIFS), and E-Gaming Federation (EGF) collectively wrote to the Home Minister earlier this yr, cautioning that an outright ban wouldn’t remove demand however would as a substitute push customers towards unlawful markets. “The demand for real-money gaming is not going to vanish overnight,” one official famous on the time. “If you shut down compliant companies, users will simply migrate to platforms that operate outside the law, beyond the reach of Indian regulators.”

That prediction now seems to be taking part in out in actual time. Search outcomes, social media advertisements, and influencer-driven campaigns are more and more dominated by offshore betting firms, a lot of whom are exploiting the sudden absence of home competitors.

Analysts say this not solely poses dangers of cash laundering and tax evasion but additionally leaves Indian customers susceptible to fraud and exploitation, with no authorized recourse in case of disputes.

Meanwhile, the celebratory tone of offshore operators is unmistakable. Digital campaigns from firms like JackBit and 4RaBet spotlight their large gives as “welcome gifts” to Indian gamers—messaging that trade observers interpret as direct gloating over the downfall of legit rivals.

The irony, insiders notice, is tough to overlook. By shutting down India’s homegrown, tax-paying gaming sector, the federal government has inadvertently turbocharged the very black-market operators it as soon as sought to curb. And until there’s a severe crackdown on offshore betting platforms, the celebration in these circles is prone to proceed.