New Delhi [India], January 1 (ANI): The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has frozen assets worth approximately Rs 192 crore belonging to ZO Games Pvt Ltd, a fully owned Indian subsidiary of Winzo Pvt Ltd, as part of an ongoing money laundering investigation. The freeze includes bank balances, Fixed Deposit Receipts (FDRs), and mutual funds.
The ED’s Bengaluru Zonal Office conducted searches at the premises of an accounting firm linked to Winzo Pvt Ltd under Section 17 of the Prevention of Money-Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, on December 30, 2025. Earlier, search and seizure operations were carried out at Winzo Pvt Ltd’s offices and at the residential premises of its Director on November 18, 2025.
According to the ED, evidence uncovered during the investigation revealed that the company had engaged in illicit practices, including making customers play real money games against bots, AI, and automated algorithms without their knowledge. Withdrawals from customer wallets were reportedly restricted or prevented.
The agency said Winzo generated proceeds of crime (POC) through “Rake Commissions” from matches played between bots and real players. This amounted to around Rs 177 crore between May 2024 and August 2025, and Rs 557 crore from April 2022 to December 2023. Additionally, Winzo held Rs 43 crore of user funds even after the Union Government banned real money games. In total, the POC generated by Winzo Pvt Ltd is estimated at approximately Rs 802 crore.
The ED further reported that part of these funds was transferred abroad to the USA and Singapore under the guise of overseas investments. Around USD 54 million is reportedly parked in a bank account in the USA under ‘WINZO US Inc.’, described as a shell company, while the operations and day-to-day business remain managed from India. (ANI)
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