Nagaland issues first online poker license to Khelo365

The Indian state of Nagaland has issued its first online skill games license to an online poker operator.

On Wednesday, the Nagaland State Lotteries office awarded an online skill games license to M/s K365 Web Assets Pvt Ltd, which operates online poker and rummy portal Khelo365.com. For the moment, K365’s license only covers its poker operations, which include No Limit Texas Hold’em and Pot Limit Omaha games.

Nagaland’s governor signed the landmark Prohibition of Gambling and Promotion and Regulation of Online Games of Skill Act 2016 in April, becoming the first Indian state to formally authorize online games of skill for stakes.

Nagaland began issuing Letters of Intent to would-be skill game licensees in August, with the first LOI going to Club Empire Tech Pvt Lgd. Nagaland has since issued a further 10 LOIs to different companies but K365 was first to get its paperwork past the government inspectors.