DGGI Exposes Fino Payments Bank's Involvement in Massive Online Betting Scam
In a significant development in the multi-crore online betting fraud investigation, the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI) has reportedly uncovered the involvement of Fino Payments Bank and its Chief Executive Officer, Rishi Gupta. The agency alleges they facilitated an extensive network of shell entities by onboarding dummy programme managers, enabling fraudulent transactions worth approximately Rs 3,000 crore.
Court Grants Custody of CEO Amid Allegations
These critical findings were presented by DGGI in its petition before a local court in Hyderabad, seeking Gupta's custody. The court granted the agency two-day custody of the CEO, who was taken into custody on Monday for questioning, with custody scheduled to conclude on Tuesday evening. During the proceedings, the court permitted Gupta's counsel to remain present at a distance during questioning, without interfering in the investigation.
Systemic Due Diligence Failure Uncovered
According to DGGI investigators, three entities were brought in as programme managers or resellers but were later discovered to be non-functioning dummy firms. The agency alleged a systemic failure of due diligence, stating that the onboarding drive was encouraged to boost turnover and fee-based income, despite the absence of mandatory inspections, audits, or risk monitoring—activities the bank was contractually empowered to conduct.
Through these dummy programme managers alone, transactions worth around Rs 3,000 crore connected to online gaming operations were routed through the bank. Furthermore, 36 additional shell entities were onboarded under the bank's role as a payment aggregator through these channels.
Specific Entities and Physical Verification
Investigators identified two specific entities during their probe:
- Oceanique Web Solutions Private Limited
- Webwin IT Hub Solutions Private Limited
Physical verification revealed these firms, allegedly linked to gaming websites and apps such as funinmatch360.com and Racejeet, were dummy and non-functional entities.
Three Dummy Programme Managers Identified
The investigation pinpointed three entities serving as dummy programme managers or resellers:
- PS Rao Digital Solutions (OPC) Private Limited
- Billexpress Solutions Private Limited
- Powerfin Technology Private Limited
According to DGGI, "These programme managers were used to onboard 36 shell entities through Fino Payments Bank under its role as a payment aggregator." The agency, as the apex body for investigating GST and central excise duty evasion, also shared a list of eight suspected programme manager or reseller entities with the bank, seeking additional information.
Organized Syndicate and Tax Evasion Scheme
DGGI claimed the shell firms were created under the guise of legitimate merchants or resellers, but physical verification showed they were non-functional and existed solely to facilitate illegal activities. These entities were allegedly part of an organized syndicate linked to illegal online real-money gaming platforms and were used to route massive volumes of funds while suppressing taxable transactions.
By providing gaming services without issuing tax invoices, the syndicate was able to mask operations, suppress turnover, and avoid declaring taxable supplies in GST returns—a sophisticated scheme to evade taxation.
Financial Scale and GST Evasion
The agency informed the court that the taxable value of services provided to the dummy or non-functioning merchants through the three programme managers between October 1, 2023, and September 30, 2025, amounted to about Rs 28 crore. With a transaction fee of approximately 0.75%, investigators estimated that the total transaction value handled through the bank via these programme managers was around Rs 3,000 crore.
On this massive transaction volume, 28% GST was allegedly evaded, representing significant revenue loss to the government exchequer.
CEO's Alleged Central Role
DGGI further stated that Rishi Gupta played a key role in selecting and approving partners and programme managers associated with the bank. Investigators alleged that the onboarding of the entities took place under his supervision, describing it as "active collusion" and "conscious facilitation" at the highest levels of management.
The agency contended that Gupta was the "mastermind in the commission of the offence" and reported facing obstruction when officials attempted to enter the bank premises to conduct investigations and record statements. This alleged resistance further complicated the investigation into what appears to be a carefully orchestrated financial fraud scheme.
