The archive · Consumer Apps · Strategic decision · 2018–2024
Loco's 'Twitch for India' bet ends: $65M majority sale to UAE's Redwood
India's top game-streaming platform raised $51M, then sold a majority stake to UAE's Redwood in 2024 after ad revenue failed.
Loco
What the business is
Live game streaming platform ('Twitch for India') with publisher licensing deals; viewers watch streamers and support them with virtual goods.
Starting capital：$51M raised: $9M seed from Krafton (June 2021), $42M Series A (March 2022)
How it started
Loco began as a live trivia app that Pocket Aces acquired in 2018; founders Anirudh Pandita and Ashwin Suresh spun it out in June 2021 with a $9M seed from Krafton to build a Twitch for India.
What happened
A $42M Series A (Hashed, Makers Fund, Catamaran, Krafton, Lumikai, Korea Investment Partners, Hiro Capital) at about $145M pre-money took it to 5.3M MAU and 450k DAU. It launched 'Loco VIP' microtransactions in November 2023, but the advertising (AVOD) model failed to generate revenue, DAUs declined after streamer spending was cut, and 40 staff (36%) were let go in November 2023.
How it ended up
In September 2024 Loco sold a majority stake to UAE-based Redwood in a $65M deal that gave all existing backers a full exit, below its ~$150M 2022 valuation. Founders stay on; the platform pivots to global markets and deprioritizes India.
Background
Loco was India's leading game-streaming platform, built on the bet that a country with hundreds of millions of gamers would support a homegrown rival to Twitch. Founded as a live trivia app, it was acquired by Pocket Aces in 2018 and spun out in June 2021 by Anirudh Pandita and Ashwin Suresh with a $9M seed from PUBG-owner Krafton.
The startup raised $42M in a 2022 Series A at roughly $145M pre-money and hit 5.3M monthly active users with 450,000 daily users. It signed licensing deals with publishers including PUBG, Activision and Riot Games to secure a first-mover position in Indian game streaming.
Growth did not convert into revenue. The advertising-video-on-demand model failed, daily active users fell once Loco cut aggressive spending on streamers, and the company laid off 40 staff in November 2023. In September 2024, UAE-based Redwood bought a majority stake in a $65M deal that exited every existing investor below Loco's ~$150M 2022 peak valuation.
The founders stayed on to take the platform global, telling Storyboard18 that India was no longer a priority because esports growth had stalled amid regulatory restrictions and overdependence on a few game titles.
What has to be true
- The bet rested on audience size alone: 100M monthly battle-royale players and no domestic streaming incumbent, but demand was never tested against willingness to pay.
- Licensing deals with publishers gave it content supply but not a working revenue engine, so growth and monetization diverged.
- The down-round sale to Redwood in 2024 was a controlled exit: backers recovered capital through a full-exit structure rather than a shutdown.
- Pivoting away from India shows the founders' assessment that the category was structurally weak there, not just poorly executed.
What can be applied
A huge audience does not make a revenue model work: when AVOD failed and retention fell, the only exit was a majority sale at a steep markdown to the first strategic buyer.
Aftermath
As of September 2026, Loco continues under Redwood's ownership with Pandita and Suresh leading expansion into LATAM, the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Europe, testing both AVOD and subscription models per market. India is no longer a priority, and the original Indian streaming business that investors paid $51M to build is effectively over.
Sources
- India's game streaming startup Loco sells to Redwood in $65 million deal
- Game streaming platform Loco raises $42 million to build 'Twitch for India'
- Game streaming firm Loco sells majority stake to UAE-based Redwood for $65 mn
- Loco sells majority of stake to UAE based tech company, says India not a priority
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