Real-money gaming heat rises as ED freezes Rs 590 crore linked to Winzo’s foreign units

Further, all accounting records, management of foreign bank accounts, and related financial functions of the US and Singapore entities are handled from India.

• ED seizes Rs 590 crore assets of Winzo, Zo under FEMA violations
• Winzo allegedly ran banned real-money games abroad from India
• Funds parked abroad were controlled and managed from India

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The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has seized assets worth Rs 590 crore belonging to Winzo Pvt Ltd and its subsidiary Zo Pvt Ltd under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999, alleging illegal overseas investments linked to real-money gaming operations.

The action, taken by the ED’s Bengaluru zonal office under Section 37A of FEMA, includes bank accounts, fixed deposits, mutual funds and bonds. The agency said the seizure follows alleged contraventions of Section 4 of FEMA.

According to the ED, Winzo, which hosts more than 100 real-money games and claims a user base of around 25 crore, made overseas direct investments in its subsidiaries Winzo US Inc, USA, and Winzo SG PTE Ltd, Singapore, to the tune of USD 54,255,010 (about Rs 492 crore).

The agency alleged that through its US-based arm, Winzo conducted online gambling operations in Brazil, Germany and the United States, offering games such as Bingo, Ludo, Snakes and Ladders, Mines, Solitaire, Spades and Black Jack.

“Winzo has parked its funds abroad under the guise of overseas direct investment, however, the entire gaming infrastructure for these overseas operations is shared and controlled from India,” the ED said in a statement.

It further claimed that the foreign entities had no regular employees or independent establishments abroad and that their day-to-day management, accounting, and financial operations were handled from India.

The ED said its investigation found that the US and Singapore subsidiaries were engaged in gambling and real-money gaming activities prohibited under Rule 19(1)(b) of the Foreign Exchange Management (Overseas Investment) Rules, 2022.

The agency also alleged that these subsidiaries were involved in non-bonafide business activities in contravention of Rule 9(1) of the same rules.

It cited the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 (PROG Act), under which certain online gaming activities are banned in India, arguing that Winzo could not have made or continued overseas investments after the enforcement of the law.

According to the ED, foreign currency and income generated abroad from these activities, amounting to Rs 590 crore, were held in the bank accounts of the US and Singapore subsidiaries in violation of FEMA provisions.

(With inputs from PTI and ANI)