Krafton, the South Korean company behind PUBG and Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI), is preparing to invest an additional EUR 215 million in India over the next three to four years. The move signals a strategic shift as the publisher expands past gaming into artificial intelligence, robotics, and deep tech.
Revealed Friday, the fresh pledge will push Krafton’s total planned investment in India past EUR 430 million. That figure includes more than EUR 215 million the company has already deployed in the country since 2021. The new commitment is distinct from a separate EUR 577 million India-focused growth fund that Krafton launched alongside South Korean internet firm Naver and investor Mirae Asset in December 2025. Krafton had pledged roughly EUR 118 million toward that fund’s first close, and the company confirmed the newly announced EUR 215 million stands apart from it.
Why India Anchors Krafton’s Growth Strategy
India has emerged as one of Krafton’s most important markets, opening a door to the world’s most populous nation, which counts more than a billion internet subscribers and upward of 700 million smartphone users. The company first entered through gaming with BGMI, a localized and reworked version of PUBG that has now topped 260 million downloads.
In recent years, Krafton has diversified by backing Indian startups outside the gaming category. To date, the company has invested in roughly 18 companies, including four to five gaming studios. Its portfolio features Nodwin Gaming, Loco, Pratilipi, Kuku FM, and One Impression, among others.
A Turbulent Road in the Indian Market
Krafton’s presence in India has weathered notable disruptions. In 2020, the Indian government banned PUBG Mobile alongside hundreds of apps with links to China, amid rising tensions between New Delhi and Beijing. Krafton responded by launching BGMI in 2021, dropping Tencent Games as the title’s Indian publisher and shifting its India servers to Microsoft’s Azure cloud to address government concerns.
Even so, BGMI was banned in 2022 before the federal government permitted its return on a three-month trial basis the following year. Krafton has continued to grow the franchise since, and it plans to release BGMI Lite in India by the end of 2026.
Deepening Local Operations and Government Ties
The latest pledge follows a meeting between Krafton chairman Chang Byung-gyu and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi earlier Friday. According to Krafton, the two discussed how India and South Korea could collaborate more closely across gaming, technology, and other emerging sectors.
Krafton has also strengthened its footprint on the ground. Last year, it acquired Pune-based Nautilus Mobile, the studio behind the Real Cricket franchise. More recently, the company launched KIGI Academy, an industry-academia initiative designed to train talent in game development and digital creation.
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