Global gambling site Stake.com is reaping the rewards of its investment in India with more than $100m already wagered on the continuing Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket season.
Cyprus-headquartered Stake has targeted growth in India just as other operators are distancing themselves from the market due to concerns about the GST flat tax on turnover. The group enabled deposits in Indian rupees for the first time ahead of IPL 2024 and has commenced a series of marketing campaigns.
Stake said this has led to “unprecedented levels of betting activity” during the IPL season, which concludes later this month.
“We are constantly striving to improve our product and want to make Stake easily accessible to as many players as possible,” said Stake’s director of commercial, Jarrod Febbraio. “With more than $100m wagered this season alone, the IPL is soaring in popularity, and so is Stake.”
IPL marketing boosts Stake’s Indian presence
The Indian rupee has become the sixth fiat currency available on the group’s flagship Stake sportsbook. One marketing campaign saw punters paid out as winners if their team hit a six during the first four overs. The only stipulation was that bets must have been placed in INR with a maximum payout of up to $25. Stake said this occurred during 30 of 48 selected IPL matches, or 63%.
“The promotion also served as a savvy customer acquisition strategy. More than 80% of users to have redeemed the offer were new to Stake as first-time depositors,” Stake said.
“We wanted to spice things up for the 2024 season, and this promotion was perfect for our customers who don’t like cricket, they love it.”
Super Group has already exited India over GST tax
The 2024 IPL season is the first since plans were announced for the 28% GST tax on turnover for betting. India’s GST Council announced the move in July last year to much ire. Industry bodies such as the All India Gaming Federation (AIGF) condemned the tax rate as potentially stunting the regulated market.
Super Group, which owns Betway and Spin, exited the Indian market last October in response to the GST announcement.
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