Stake has pushed back against allegations that it rigs “big wins” for Kick streamers such as Drake and Adin Ross, after a Bloomberg Businessweek investigation questioned the odds behind some of their viral gambling moments.
The report analyzed roughly 1,500 hours of Stake gameplay streamed on Kick by 25 users, including Drake, Ross, Trainwreck, and xQc. Bloomberg said it focused on “big wins,” defined as payouts exceeding 1,000 times the base bet, and estimated spin counts by tracking changes in on-screen balances during livestreams.
According to the outlet’s findings, Drake appeared to hit big wins more frequently when playing slot games owned by Easygo, Stake’s parent company, than when playing titles operated by third parties. Bloomberg claimed his big-win rate on Easygo slots was roughly four times higher than the average rate it calculated across its sample. On third-party games, however, his results were described as average.
Stake responds to claims it rigs Kick gambling streams
The investigation also highlighted an August 2025 stream in which Drake’s Bitcoin balance fell from $3.5 million to just over $400,000 during online slot play. Stake co-founder Ed Craven then joined the call and deposited $500,000 into Drake’s account, according to Bloomberg’s analysis of the footage. Shortly after switching to Easygo-operated games, Drake hit multiple large wins, bringing his balance back above $2 million before eventually ending the session lower.
Ross was also examined in the report. Bloomberg said that in one marathon stream on Stake’s US sweepstakes site, Ross landed a significant win while playing an Easygo-owned title after being prompted in chat by Craven. The outlet stated that his big-win rate on in-house games appeared higher than average, though it noted that the sample size was smaller.
Stake denied the claims. In a statement, the company called the findings “categorically incorrect” and argued that using “big wins” as a benchmark is arbitrary. It also said comparing win rates across different slot games ignores differences in game mechanics and mathematical design. Stake did not provide its own player payout data in response to the report.
The analysis arrives amid mounting legal pressure in the US. Multiple class-action lawsuits have been filed against Stake and, in some cases, against Drake and Ross, alleging deceptive trade practices and illegal gambling operations tied to the platform’s sweepstakes model. Some complaints also argue that livestreams showcasing rare, high-multiplier jackpots can create a misleading perception of typical outcomes.
Stake has repeatedly stated that it does not give influencers more favorable odds and that it verifies users and enforces geo-blocking in restricted jurisdictions.
Meanwhile, Kick is also facing other pressure for its on-stream content. Last year, French streamer Jean Pormanove died while filming a broadcast described as “ten days of torture.”
Two streamers were charged earlier this year. In January they were hit with several criminal charges, including “assault, incitement to hatred, abuse of a vulnerable person, and recording and broadcasting violent images.”
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