Former cricketer Suresh Raina arrives to appear before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for questioning in an alleged illegal betting app-linked money laundering case, in New Delhi on Wednesday
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SHIV KUMAR PUSHPAKAR

Former India international cricketer Suresh Raina was on Wednesday questioned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for reportedly endorsing an illegal online betting app, which is allegedly an offence under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Known for his big hits, Raina, 38, appeared before the investigators at the ED office here in the morning at around 11 am, said sources. The ED is probing to find out whether Raina was aware that international betting app ‘1xBet’ was illegally operating in India and terms of his engagement with the company running it, including endorsement fee.

Last year, he was announced as “responsible gaming ambassador” of the sports betting app. His statement was recorded by the ED under the PMLA, said sources.

The ED is probing laundering of money through several illegal betting apps.

Google and Meta

It had recently summoned representatives of Google and Meta for questioning over use of such platforms for pushing betting apps.

Late last month, the ED recorded the statement of a Google representative for using multiple platforms for surrogate advertisements.

The ED carried out multi-state searches at 15 premises to probe money laundering following ‘Parimath’ – another illegal betting app —allegedly cheated people to the tune of ₹2,000 crore.

The searches were at locations in Mumbai, Delhi-NCR, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Madurai (Tamil Nadu) and Surat (Gujarat), after the ED took over the FIR filed by Mumbai cyber police to launch investigation under the PMLA.

Published on August 13, 2025