New Delhi, Jan 27: India’s Enforcement Directorate has filed a chargesheet against real-money online gaming app WinZO and its promoters, alleging that users were duped of about 734 crore rupees ($88 million) through manipulated games that used bots and artificial intelligence, the agency said on Sunday.
In a statement, the ED said its Bengaluru zonal office filed the prosecution complaint on Jan. 23 before a court designated to try cases under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The chargesheet names Winzo Pvt. Ltd., its directors Paavan Nanda and Saumya Singh Rathore, as well as wholly owned subsidiaries including Winzo US Inc., Winzo SG Pte. Ltd. and ZO Pvt. Ltd., the agency said.
The ED alleged that WinZO offered more than 100 games through its mobile application and claimed a user base of about 250 million, largely from tier-3 and tier-4 cities.
According to the agency, an analysis of game codebases, third-party developer agreements and internal communications showed that until December 2023, the platform’s real-money games were embedded with bots, AI and algorithm profiles that manipulated outcomes.
From May 2024 to August 2025, WinZO allegedly altered its approach by simulating historical match-play data of dormant or inactive players against real users without their knowledge or consent, the ED said.
“To suppress and conceal these unscrupulous acts, the company deliberately referred to the use of bots and simulated players under misleading terminologies such as EP (engagement play), PPP (past performance of player) and Persona,” the agency added.
Investigators said users were initially lured with bonuses and early wins against easy bots and allowed to withdraw small amounts to create a false sense of trust. As users increased their stakes, harder bots were allegedly deployed, resulting in significant financial losses.
“Genuine winnings at higher stakes were often blocked through restrictive withdrawal mechanisms, forcing users into continued gameplay,” the ED alleged.
The agency said users incurred losses of about 734 crore rupees, while the company allegedly failed to return 47.66 crore rupees in legitimate winnings and deposits even after the central government banned real-money gaming apps in August 2025.
The ED estimated that the alleged proceeds of crime totalled 3,522.05 crore rupees between the 2021–22 and 2025–26 financial years as of Aug. 22, 2025, adding that the funds were laundered through shell companies in the United States and Singapore.
The agency also claimed that the platform’s gaming structure caused severe financial distress, particularly among users from poorer backgrounds, with some reportedly experiencing extreme mental distress and suicidal tendencies.
The ED said it conducted raids at premises linked to WinZO and its promoters last year and arrested Nanda and Rathore. Rathore is currently out on bail, it added.
