The Financial Intelligence Unit-India has partnered with the Directorate General of GST Intelligence, Hyderabad, to trace the ultimate beneficiaries of a massive betting syndicate that allegedly routed nearly ₹23,000 crore through a web of shell companies and dummy merchant entities.
Massive Financial Trail Unearthed
Investigators have so far identified around 177 shell entities allegedly used to channel funds linked to illegal real-money gaming platforms. According to officials, these firms were projected as legitimate businesses—such as merchant establishments or resellers—but were found to be non-functional upon physical verification.
The probe suggests that these entities played a crucial role in disguising the true nature of financial transactions, enabling large-scale movement of funds while avoiding regulatory scrutiny.
Two companies—Oceanique Web Solutions Private Limited and Webwin IT Hub Solutions Private Limited—were physically inspected and found to be dummy setups with no real business operations. Authorities claim these firms were linked to online gaming platforms such as funinmatch360.com and Racejeet.
Payment Ecosystem Under Lens
For the first time, the investigation has highlighted the alleged involvement of payment aggregators, payment gateways, and banks in facilitating such operations. Officials indicated that these financial intermediaries processed high volumes of transactions linked to the syndicate, earning nearly 1% as facilitation fees.
The Directorate General of GST Intelligence has raised concerns over what it described as a systemic lapse in due diligence. It alleged that onboarding of merchant entities was driven by the goal of boosting transaction volumes and fee-based income, often bypassing mandatory compliance checks such as inspections, audits, and risk assessments.
Dummy Programme Managers Identified
The investigation has also identified certain entities acting as “programme managers” or intermediaries, including PS Rao Digital Solutions (OPC) Private Limited, Billexpress Solutions Private Limited, and Powerfin Technology Private Limited. These entities were allegedly used to onboard nearly three dozen shell companies through a payment bank functioning as an aggregator.
Authorities believe these intermediaries were instrumental in structuring the network and enabling the smooth routing of funds across multiple layers.
Suppression of Taxable Transactions
According to investigators, the syndicate operated by masking taxable transactions under the guise of legitimate services. The shell entities allegedly facilitated online gaming operations without issuing proper tax invoices, allowing operators to underreport turnover and evade Goods and Services Tax (GST) liabilities.
“This was a coordinated effort to conceal the true nature of transactions and suppress taxable income,” officials indicated, adding that such practices significantly impacted revenue collection.
Frozen Funds and Regulatory Concerns
Another concern flagged during the probe is the handling of funds in frozen accounts. Enforcement agencies noted that when bank accounts linked to shell entities are frozen, substantial amounts often remain parked with banks for extended periods, as no legitimate claimant comes forward.
The ongoing investigation is expected to further examine the accountability of financial intermediaries and strengthen regulatory oversight in the rapidly growing digital payments and online gaming ecosystem.
