ED files prosecution complaint against Winzo and its directors

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Sunday said it has filed a prosecution complaint against online real money gaming platform Winzo Pvt. Ltd., its directors and their respective subsidiaries are covered by the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.

The complaint was filed before the Special Court for PMLA cases (CCH-1), Bengaluru, on January 23. Winzo Pvt. Ltd. was named as the prime accused along with its directors Paavan Nanda and Saumya Singh Rathore. ED also Winzo US Inc. (USA), Winzo SG Pte. He also sued subsidiaries owned by the company, including. Ltd. (Singapore) and ZO Pvt. Ltd.

The investigation was initiated based on multiple FIRs registered under the Indian Penal Code by CEN Police in Bengaluru and police authorities in Rajasthan, New Delhi and Gurugram, alleging cheating.

ED, in its statement, said that on November 18, 2025 and December 30, 2025, it conducted search and seizure operations at Winzo’s office premises, the residences of its executives and the office of its accounting firm. These searches reportedly led to seizure of incriminating documents and electronic records and freezing of movable assets worth around Rs 690 crore, including bank balances, payment gateway funds, mutual funds, bonds, fixed deposits and cryptocurrency wallets.

According to ED, Winzo operated a real money gaming (RMG) platform offering over 100 games and claimed to have a user base of around 25 crore, mostly from tier 3 and 4 cities. While the company charged users a commission on bet amounts and guaranteed a transparent gaming environment free of bots, the investigation revealed widespread manipulation.

ED stated that by December 2023, games will be equipped with bots driven by artificial intelligence and algorithms. Between May 2024 and August 2025, the company allegedly began simulating historical gaming data of inactive or inactive players against real users without their knowledge or consent. According to ED, the company disguised these unscrupulous practices with misleading terms such as ‘Engagement Game’, ‘Actor’s Track Record’ and ‘Persona’.

Researchers found that users were initially lured with bonuses and easy wins to build trust, then more challenging bots were deployed with higher risks, leading to significant losses. ED estimates that users suffered losses of around ₹734 crore due to such practices, while legitimate earnings worth ₹47.66 crore were allegedly retained.

The evidence found also showed that this manipulative gaming structure of Winzo caused severe financial distress, especially in users with poor financial circumstances, and some users reported extreme mental distress as well as self-harming tendencies, according to the ED.

The agency alleged that Winzo generated proceeds of crime amounting to ₹ 3,522.05 crore between FY 2021-22 and FY 2025-26 (up to August 22, 2025). It is alleged that these funds were laundered through shell companies in the USA and Singapore, and approximately $55 million was transferred under the guise of overseas direct investment.

ED claimed that the prosecution complaint clearly shows that the accused knowingly produced, acquired, possessed, used and concealed the proceeds of crime and tried to pass them off as untarnished property.