Global music superstar Drake and prominent American livestreamer Adin Ross have been named in a major US civil lawsuit, accused of orchestrating a scheme to artificially boost the rapper's online popularity and royalties using funds from an online casino.
The Allegations: A Racketeering and Fraud Scheme
The class action, filed in a US court on behalf of two women from Virginia, seeks damages of $5 million. It alleges that Drake, Ross, and the online gambling platform Stake.com violated Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) laws as well as consumer protection statutes. The lawsuit claims the scheme has been active since 2022 and represents an "ongoing and imminent threat of racketeering activity."
Central to the case is the accusation that Stake.com's anonymised design enabled Drake to secretly fund the purchase of automated streams, or 'bots', on music platforms like Spotify. This, the plaintiffs argue, was done to fraudulently inflate his streaming numbers, royalties, and overall popularity. No criminal charges have been filed in relation to these allegations.
How the Alleged Operation Worked
Court documents detail a complex process to hide the financing. It is alleged that Drake and Ross transferred gambling winnings via Stake's anonymous tip function to an Australian man identified as George Nguyen. Nguyen, who has publicly promoted both Drake and Stake, is then accused of converting the Stake proceeds into cash and cryptocurrency to pay bot vendors for the artificial streams on behalf of the celebrities.
The lawsuit claims Drake transferred millions of dollars as part of this operation, including tipping Ross $100,000 and $10,000 sums. It cites public posts, chat logs, and leaked communications as evidence of Nguyen's pivotal role. The suit further alleges that Stake, alongside Drake and Ross, deliberately misled consumers into believing the platform was legal and safe, despite being officially banned in the US, UK, and Australia.
Wider Consequences and Legal Repercussions
The lead plaintiffs, Tiffany Hines and LaShawnna Ridley, state they suffered serious harm after Drake's promotions encouraged them to gamble on Stake. They argue the platform financially damaged users by promoting illegal gambling and exposing them to addiction risks.
This is not the first legal challenge for the parties involved. A Missouri man filed a similar case in October, which Ross dismissed as "bullshit." Stake's US-facing site, Stake.us, also faces lawsuits in multiple states alleging illegal operation. In response to a previous case, Stake's Australian parent company, Easygo, stated it "reject[s] allegations" and will "vigorously defend" all claims.
Drake's promotion of Stake has been highly public. Since 2022, he has promoted the casino on Instagram and on Kick, the Easygo-owned livestreaming platform. In one June post, he revealed he had gambled $124.5 million and lost $8.2 million in a single month. The lawsuit alleges Stake has paid Drake $100 million a year and provided free gambling credit to him and Ross.
Adin Ross, who moved to a rival casino, Rainbet, in 2025, continues to stream on Kick due to his friendship with its co-founder, Ed Craven. Craven, hailed as Australia's youngest billionaire, co-founded Kick in Melbourne in 2022 after the success of Stake.
