India’s Enforcement Directorate (ED) summoned officials from Google and Meta to appear on July 21 in Bengaluru. The move stems from an investigation into whether their platforms enabled illegal betting apps through paid ads and algorithmic boosts.
- The Enforcement Directorate is India’s primary agency for probing economic crimes.
- The summons was issued under provisions of the Prevention of Money‑laundering Act.
- Representatives must present details on ad campaigns linked to online betting apps.
- ANI, India’s leading news wire, broke the story citing unnamed official sources.
- Google (GOOGL.O) and Meta (META.O) have not yet publicly commented on the summons.
- The agencies face questions over revenue generated from ads promoting unlicensed betting platforms.
- This action follows wider government scrutiny of tech platforms’ role in facilitating illicit activities.
The ED’s move signals growing regulatory pressure on global tech giants in India. It also underscores the government’s intent to clamp down on the misuse of digital ad inventory for unauthorized services.
