The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has frozen deposits worth over ₹500 crore of three gaming companies under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002 for alleged fraudulent behaviour.
Earlier, ED carried out search operations at various locations across Bengaluru and Gurugram between November 18 and November 22 as users lodged complaints of significant losses while playing Real Money Games (RMG) on the platforms of Nirdesa Networks Pvt. Ltd, Gameskraft Technologies Pvt. Ltd and WinZO.
During the search, the ED froze around ₹505 crore across bank balances, bonds, FDRs, mutual funds possessed by WinZO and eight escrow accounts of Gameskraft and Nirdesa holding balance worth ₹18.57 crore. WinZO reportedly held ₹43 crore without refunding to the gamers/customers, while Gameskraft holds over ₹ 30 crore in its escrow accounts, even after the RMG ban.
FIR complaints accused WinZO of cheating, blocking of accounts, impersonation, misuse of PAN as well as complainant’s KYC.
ED also stated that WinZO is operating RMG in foreign countries like Brazil, USA and Germany etc., from India. WinZO also reported pitted unaware customers against algorithms/software in RMG.
“WinZO has prevented/limited withdrawals of monies held by the customers in the wallets of WinZO. It also generated POC in the form of bet amounts placed and lost by real customers through the unscrupulous use of such algorithms/software which are received by the entity in its bank accounts,” said ED in its report.
In a statement, WinZO said it is cooperating with the investigating agency and remains fully compliant with all applicable laws.
In the case of the other two companies, a complainant alleged that Pocket52, a gaming platform operated by Nirdesa Networks, committed large-scale fraud via manipulated game outcomes, player collusion, technical glitches, withdrawal restrictions, and lack of transparency. The complainant reported losing over ₹ 3 crore due to systemic cheating, with Pocket52 allegedly dismissing concerns, removing features like hand history, and ignoring responsible gaming practices. Authorities and users allege the platform rigged its algorithms and promoted unfair play.
During the investigation, ED said many users raised complaints over manipulation, lack of transparency. Accordingly, the ED seized mobile phones, laptops and data backup from the premises of Gameskraft Technologies.
Published on November 24, 2025
