ED Files PMLA Prosecution Complaint Against Winzo, Directors Over Alleged Manipulated Gaming Operations

Background of the Case

The Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Bengaluru Zonal Office, has filed a Prosecution Complaint on January 23, 2026, before the Special Court under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) (CCH-1), Bengaluru, in the case of M/s Winzo Pvt. Ltd. The company has been arraigned as the main accused along with its Directors Paavan Nanda and Saumya Singh Rathore, and its wholly owned subsidiaries, including Winzo US Inc. (USA), Winzo SG Pte. Ltd. (Singapore) and ZO Pvt. Ltd. The investigation was initiated on the basis of multiple FIRs registered by Bengaluru CEN Police Station and police authorities in Rajasthan, New Delhi and Gurugram, alleging offences of cheating under the Indian Penal Code, 1860. Earlier, the ED conducted search and seizure operations on November 18 and December 30, 2025, resulting in seizure of incriminating records and freezing of movable assets, including bank balances, payment gateway balances, mutual funds, bonds, fixed deposits and cryptocurrency wallets, valued at approximately ₹690 crore.

Key Findings of the ED Investigation

According to the ED, Winzo operates a Real Money Gaming (RMG) platform offering over 100 games, with a claimed user base of around 25 crore users, largely from Tier-3 and Tier-4 cities. The investigation revealed that the games were allegedly manipulated through the use of BOTs, AI profiles and simulated player data, concealed under misleading terms such as “Engagement Play (EP)”, “Past Performance of Player (PPP)” and “Persona”. The ED alleged that users were initially induced to play through easy BOTs, while higher-stake gameplay was later manipulated using hard BOTs, causing losses of approximately ₹734 crore to genuine users. The agency further alleged that legitimate winnings and deposits worth ₹47.66 crore were not returned, and that the company generated Proceeds of Crime amounting to ₹3,522.05 crore between FY 2021-22 and FY 2025-26. It was also alleged that proceeds were laundered through shell companies in the USA and Singapore, with about USD 55 million remitted under the guise of overseas direct investment. The ED has invoked Sections 3, 4 and 70 of the PMLA against the accused. Further investigation is ongoing.