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9stacks: Fuelling the Online Gaming Sector by Offering More than Just Poker

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Sudhir Kamath & Rishab Mathur,FoundersAt present, real money games are a 1.5 billion USD business(9000 cr.) across all kinds of money games. An estimated increase of 30-40% is foreseen and if that continues for the next three to four years we are looking at a 4 billion dollar industry.

Globally, gaming is a much larger industry than other forms of entertainment industries like movies, television etc. However in India, there is a tendency to applaud the movie and television sectors more but it is inevitable that this will change.

The next five years will clearly show change and more involvement of gaming in the lives of the younger generation.

It is highly expected that the younger generation will turn to gaming for their entertainment needs and as they grow older with increasing income and stability in life, they would be able to invest in their gaming life.

The Vision:Creating & Nurturing Premium, Safety First, Online Gaming Experiences
The online gaming industry in India needed standardized, safety focussed platforms to play on & transparent marketing promotions, to solidify it’s appeal and expansions in India.

"To satiate the needs of the gaming sector and predict a bright present and future in the sector, 9stacks, a poker gaming platform, was launched four years ago"

In 2017, 9stacks launched resolving all these issues in one big swipe. The company pioneered a unique two wallet system that soon became the gold standard for all other online gaming companies in India. The contests and tournaments belted out by the company have always been ground breaking and trendsetting.

Whether it was the LFGVegas promotion, where 9stacks took 100 winners across India to the Las Vegas on an all expenses paid trip to play in the World Series of Poker 2017, or the 9 Missketeers a unique women poker player focussed sponsorship aimed at inviting & celebrating more and more talented indian women into the world of poker or the launch of the practical responsible gaming solutions, voice chat, rock solid safety measures 9stacks has it all.

4 years after becoming the go to platform for all Indian poker players, 9stacks has launched its Rummy and Call break platform, apart from a dedicated fantasy gaming platform called Ungligames.

The 9stacks app hosts all your favorite online card games like poker, rummy and callbreak, with various others in the pipeline. Ungligames hosts all fantasy cricket and football gaming variants plus 2 exclusive and unique formats that you will not find anywhere else.

The company is reportedly doing quite well, with it's revenue steadily increasing month on month. The action on the tables is 24x7 and newbie players are able to rb shoulders to some of the best poker players in the country on a daily basis.

Founders Sudhir Kamath and Rishab Mathur have come together to incubate and take this idea to its ultimate fruition. While Sudhir ensures that the team has the best mix of people and resources available to them, Rishab protects security and data integrity together with his team, spending sleepless nights to get to the right solutions.

Their expertise is hardly limited to this. They are both visionaries and are known to dive deep into ensuring their gaming platforms remain high on growth, but do not compromise on the player experience.

Robust Infrastructure Behind Creating Effective Impact
The 9stacks poker platform has one of the most robust infrastructures in the country
today which is a commendable feat.

The platform is kept interesting with an array of tournaments and cash promotions with some uber lucrative cash deals where one can start playing with a minimal budget and still quality to win up to 3 lacs in guaranteed prizes.

At the heart of it, 9stacks is for people and this is a commitment that they will not lose sight of


‘One of our other main attractions is the INR 3,200 welcome bonus and that along with other fun formats have made it an enjoyable platform to be on where players, especially newbies, have a relaxed yet super lucrative experience playing on 9stacks,' says Sudhir Kamath, CEO & Co-Founder, 9stacks.

The gamified first month consists of a very simple, yet super engaging 9 Day Login Challenge that has super do able tasks which the new users can complete to redeem their welcome bonus amount. Incidentally, this amount is also the biggest real money welcome bonus amount that is offered to players who sign up on the platform

"There is a reason for this for many new time players in India, poker isn’t a game they have ever played so this helps to introduce the game to them with initial task challenges that let them understand the game better. The experienced team at 9stacks has been engineered to help in developing interest in budding poker players and also be a poker hotspot for long time players." adds Sudhir.

"At the core, 9stacks is a platform for all types of players, built by passionate poker players, and this is a commitment that we will not lose sight of. For us, user experience is of utmost importance. We ensure that the experience is smooth and all our customers are happy and satisfied with our platform every time,' says Rishab Mathur, CTO & Co-Founder, 9stacks.

Privacy can be one of the main concerns and they would need assurance of their safety and data security.

The company thus implements stringent measures to prevent data theft of any kind and assures users for reliability.

Since poker is a real money game, advanced and careful protections are set in place. In fact, 9stacks was the first platform in India to introduce two factor authentication.

In terms of the core applications, it is a micro service architecture which makes it very difficult for any one to hack.

Thus this results in secured data. Also, the gaming engine is the heart of it. The algorithm of the game has been designed and certified by a leading Australian agency that ensures the games are completely fair.

A Few Memorable Moments
While the journey is always exciting, some moments still stand out. In the last four years where 9stacks have put in unwavering hard work, there have been a few recognitions that are truly deserved.

-Featured in the top 100 start-ups to watch out for in 2018 by SUTRA HR
-Launched India's first poker rap song featuring some of the best OTT stars in the country
-Launched the first ever celebrity poker chat show anchored by OTT thespian & poker enthusiast Gopal Dutt. The show celebrated the hopes and aspirations of young actors and poker players.
-Won the best poker marketing campaign world-wide in 2019 by eGaming Review(EGR)
-Voted amongst the Top 30 startups in India in 2019 BY Super Startups Asia

For 9stacks, its nontrophy victories have been significant as well. Having started in late 2017, the company has already seen the 100,000 user mark in 2018. The future also seems quite bright for the company as with poker and Fantasy games, the million mark is a significant feat.

'In the next couple of years we are eyeing at a 10 million mark. We are optimistic about our growth and we believe that our unmatched offerings will get us there,' Sudhir Kamath foresees.

At the heart of it, 9stacks is for people and this is a commitment that the company never wants to lose sight of. The pandemic has brought many people on board and with more people signing up every day, variety is something that people will be seeking.9stacks is looking at extensively expanding the product portfolio. it all started with poker and just one version of Fantasy game. Now, three other versions of fantasy games have launched and an impending Rummy launch as well. That is not all. 9stacks will be launching another version of Fantasy game focused on football and Kabaddi too.

Sudhir and Rishab, the founders are looking at 9stacks as not only a poker stop, but a platform where people can want different games and get them. They are focusing on offering the best quality over quantity and aim to go forward with the same mindset.

While there are several other platforms out there which are going by the more the better formula, 9stacks will not be doing that.

‘Though diversification is certainly on the cards for them, losing focus on what’s actually important will always be kept at bay by the company', affirms Sudhir.

‘We started a few years ago with a dream and the journey in the last four years has been a remarkable one, with evolutions, transformations and additions. To put it mildly, this is just the beginning,' concludes Rishab Mathur, Founder, 9stacks.