ED Attaches ₹11.4 Crore Assets Of Suresh Raina, Shikhar Dhawan In Illegal Betting Probe

In a big action against celebrities endorsing illegal betting apps,the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday provisionally attached assets of two former cricketers, Suresh Raina and Shikhar Dhawan, worth Rs 11.4 crore under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.

The attachment includes mutual fund investments of Rs 6.64 crore in Raina’s name and an immovable property valued at Rs 4.5 crore in Dhawan’s name, the central agency said.

The ED action is part of its ongoing probe into the illegal offshore betting platform 1xBet and its surrogate brands, including 1xBat and 1xBat Sporting Lines, which allegedly promoted and facilitated illegal online betting operations across India.

According to ED officials, Raina and Dhawan knowingly entered into endorsement agreements with foreign entities to promote 1xBet and its surrogates.Payments for these endorsements were routed through foreign channels to conceal the illicit origin of funds, which are linked to proceeds of crime generated from illegal betting activities.

Both cricketers had earlier been summoned by ED for questioning,Raina on August 13 and Dhawan on September 4 for statements lasting approximately eight hours .

The ED has also questioned other former cricketers, including Yuvraj Singh and Robin Uthappa, as well as actors Sonu Sood, Urvashi Rautela, Mimi Chakraborty (former Trinamool Congress MP) and Ankush Hazra, as part of the probe.

The agency said these celebrities may have indirectly promoted or endorsed the banned apps, giving users the impression that they were legitimate. The probe includes allegations of money laundering, tax evasion, and manipulation of platform algorithms. Investigators have also questioned representatives from Google and Meta, and conducted multi-state searches targeting payment gateways.

The ED found that 1xBet operated illegally in India, using surrogate branding and advertisements on social media, online videos, and print media to target Indian users. Payments for endorsements were structured through layered transactions via foreign intermediaries to disguise their illicit origin.

The investigation also uncovered that 1xBet collected funds from over 6,000 mule accounts belonging to Indian users.The funds from these accounts were routed through multiple payment gateways to conceal their origin. Many merchants on these gateways were onboarded without KYC verification, and a review of their profiles showed that their declared business activities did not match actual transaction patterns, indicating money laundering exceeding Rs. 1,000 crore.

Following these findings, ED conducted searches and seized incriminating evidence. Over 60 bank accounts linked to these payment gateways have been frozen, and assets worth more than Rs. 4 crore have been seized. Investigations into the network are ongoing.

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