Drake and livestreamer Adin Ross accused of using online casino money to artificially inflate streams in class action case | Music
Drake and American livestreamer Adin Ross have been accused in a US civil lawsuit of using online casino money for automated streams to artificially inflate the singer’s royalties and popularity on music streaming platforms. No criminal complaint was filed against anyone regarding the allegations in the case.
Two women in the US state of Virginia have filed a class-action lawsuit seeking US$5 million from Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (Rico) and e-casino Stake.com, celebrities and another Australian internet personality for allegedly violating consumer protection laws.
Stake.com, a Curacao-licensed global e-casino, has been officially banned in dozens of countries, including the US, Australia and the UK.
The company’s American arm, Stake.us, does not allow users to gamble directly with real money. Bettors are betting with e-tokens; Some are provided free of charge, while others can be purchased and withdrawn as cryptocurrency.
The class-action lawsuit filed Wednesday alleges that Stake.us’ anonymized design enabled Drake to fund automated stream buys, artificially inflating his royalties and popularity on music streaming platforms including Spotify.
Court documents allege Drake and Ross hid the finances from public view by funneling gambling winnings through Stake’s anonymous tipping system to an Australian man identified as George Nguyen, who allegedly operated the online accounts grandwizardchatn**** and Grandavation.
Nguyen, who promoted Drake and the gambling platform, allegedly traded Stake proceeds, cash, and cryptocurrency to pay bot sellers for artificial music streams on behalf of Drake and Ross.
The lawsuit alleges that Drake transferred millions of dollars to Ross as part of the scheme, including $100,000 and a $10,000 tip. The lawsuit also alleges that public posts, chat logs and leaked communications prove Nguyen’s role.
The class-action lawsuit alleges that the scheme dates back to 2022 and “remains an ongoing and imminent threat of racketeering activity.” Drake, Ross, Nguyen and Stake have been contacted for comment.
The lawsuit also alleges that Stake, along with Drake and Ross, intentionally misled consumers into believing the platform was legal and harmless.
Lead plaintiffs Tiffany Hines and LaShawnna Ridley claimed they suffered significant harm after Drake’s promotions encouraged them to gamble on Stake. The class action lawsuit alleged that the platform financially harmed users by encouraging them to engage in illegal gambling and leaving them vulnerable to addiction.
In October, a Missouri man filed a similar lawsuit against Stake, Drake and Ross; At the time, Ross dismissed it as “nonsense.”
Stake.us is facing lawsuits for allegedly operating illegally in other US states. Responding to a lawsuit filed by the Los Angeles city attorney in August, Stake’s Australian parent company Easygo told The Australian: “We deny the allegations made in the media in relation to this potential claim and will vigorously defend this and all such allegations.”
Drake has been promoting Stake on Instagram and Kick, the livestreaming platform owned by Easygo, since 2022; Including a post revealing that he gambled $124.5 million in June and lost $8.2 million in one month.
“I have to share the other side of the gamble… Losses would be red hot right now,” she wrote in the story post.
“I hope I can make a big profit for all of you soon.”
The rapper promoted hour-long livestreams on Kick in December with the caption: “Can we end my toughest year of gambling on a high note? I want to MAXWIN and share 10% of it with you. Head over to Stake to find out how you can enter to win this pot.”
The lawsuit alleges that Stake paid Drake $100 million a year and provided free gambling credits to the rapper and Ross.
Ross, a 25-year-old internet personality and professional live streamer, moved to rival e-casino Rainbet and left Stake in 2025, telling viewers he would continue streaming on Kick because of his friendship with its 30-year-old founder Ed Craven.
Craven, hailed by Forbes as Australia’s youngest billionaire with an estimated fortune of $2.8 billion (AU$4.2 billion), founded Kick in Melbourne with Bijan Tehrani in 2022, following his success with Stake. The platform came to the attention of regulators in August after hosting a livestream in which a man died in France.
