MUMBAI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached assets worth ₹590 crore belonging to Winzo Private Limited, a major Indian online gaming launched in 2018, and its subsidiary, Zo Private Limited, in connection with an investigation into alleged violations of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).
According to ED officials, the seized assets include mutual fund investments, bonds, bank balances and fixed deposits held by the two companies.
The action follows a probe into Winzo’s overseas operations involving real-money online games such as Bingo, Ludo, Snakes & Ladders, Mines, Solitaire, Spades and Black Jack. The company operated in several countries, including Brazil, Germany and the United States, through its US-based subsidiary, Winzo US Inc, and its Singapore arm, Winzo SG PTE Ltd.
The ED alleges that Winzo made overseas direct investments worth USD $54.25 million (approximately ₹492 crore) in its foreign subsidiaries. These transactions are now under scrutiny.
Officials claim that the company parked funds abroad under the guise of overseas direct investment, while the entire gaming infrastructure and operations for the foreign entities were controlled from India. The foreign subsidiaries allegedly did not maintain independent offices or regular employees abroad.
“The complete management and day-to-day functioning of these entities was exercised from India,” an ED official said. Accounting records, foreign bank accounts and financial management of the US and Singapore units were also allegedly handled from India.
The agency further stated that the Singapore subsidiary earned licensing fees from the Call-break game by licensing it to the Indian entity.
According to the ED, the incorporation of wholly owned subsidiaries in the US and Singapore for gambling or real-money gaming activities violated provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management (Overseas Investment) Rules, 2022. Officials also cited the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming (PROG) Act, 2025, which banned online gaming in India, arguing that the company could not have continued or expanded such overseas investments after the ban came into force.
The ED has alleged that foreign income generated from these activities and held in overseas bank accounts amounts to ₹590 crore, now attached under FEMA provisions.