Indian police in Hyderabad have re-opened a probe into Chinese-run illegal betting apps, thought to be linked to a $53 million racket.
Hyderabad’s cybercrime unit has taken over a probe into Chinese-run illegal betting apps, four years after the investigation first began. The case centers around a money laundering racket to the tune of 443 crone (around $53 million USD), routed back to companies based in Hong Kong.
Back in 2021, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) flagged suspicious activity from Chinese-owned apps operating in India. According to the complaint, illegal funds were moved through companies based in Delhi and Mumbai with the pretence of paying for cloud services and freight shipping. However, the ED alleged that the addresses of those companies were fake.
“The Chinese directors of Linkyun and Dokypay have absconded, raising further suspicions about the operations,” read the original complaint from the ED. “The money trail investigation showed that funds collected through banned Chinese betting apps were chanelled through e-wallets and remitted to Hong Kong-based firms.”
What’s next for the probe?
The original case came to the authorities’ attention when a Hyderabad resident reported losing money to a colour prediction game hosted on a Chinese app. However, despite how long the investigation has been running, no arrest have yet been made, only notices to some of the people accused at the Indian companies money was being transmitted through.
Now in 2025, the case has been formally re-registered with the cybercrime unit on May 3, with charges linked to cheating, forgery, forgery for the purpose of cheating, using forged documents, and more being levelled. With the transfer of the case, it’s expected that the specialized police unit will take a fresh look at all evidence, financial documents, and the digital footprints of the various companies involved.
This comes in the wake of India eyeing stricter regulations around online gambling to prevent illegal activities like these from taking place.
