ED Attaches Assets Of Suresh Raina, Shikhar Dhawan In 1xBet Betting Case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached assets worth INR 11.14 Cr belonging to cricketers Suresh Raina and Shikhar Dhawan in connection with endorsement of illegal betting platform 1xBet.

In a statement, ED said that it has provisionally seized INR 6.64 Cr worth of mutual fund investments held in Raina’s name and an INR 4.5 Cr “immovable property” owned by Dhawan. 

These assets were connected to the proceeds of crime generated from illegal betting operations of 1xBet. The endorsement payments were allegedly structured through layered transactions to disguise their origin. 

The action was taken under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002 as part of its investigation into alleged unlawful endorsements of the betting platform.

The agency said the payments made to the cricketers were routed through foreign intermediaries to hide the source of funds. Investigators found that 1xBet collected money from Indian users through more than 6,000 mule accounts. 

According to the ED, these accounts were used to receive deposits, which were then routed through multiple payment gateways. Many merchants were onboarded by the payment gateways without proper KYC checks, the agency said.

The move comes as the ED expands its investigation into celebrities, influencers and public figures promoting offshore betting apps suspected of funnelling money through illegal channels. Over the past year, the agency has examined endorsements of platforms such as 1xBet, FairPlay, Parimatch, Junglee Rummy, JeetWin, A23 and Lotus365.

In their investigations pertaining to the aforementioned platforms, ED has also questioned several public personalities, including former cricketers Harbhajan Singh, Yuvraj Singh, actor Sonu Sood, Rana Daggubati, Prakash Raj, Vijay Deverakonda and Urvashi Rautela, over paid promotional associations with such platforms.

Notably, earlier regulators have raised repeated concerns about offshore betting platforms targeting Indian users despite being banned. 

The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) issued advisories warning celebrities and influencers against endorsing betting and gambling apps.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has also blocked several such platforms over the last two years for violating gambling and money laundering laws.

Users have reportedly lost nearly INR 1 Lakh Cr across offshore betting platforms, with a significant portion of the funds routed abroad through unauthorised channels.