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A local entrepreneur in Mumbai faced a loss of more than Rs 12 crore due to an online betting site, leading him into serious financial trouble. The individual, Ajit Tripathi (name changed), developed his business over many years but was lured in by online gaming ads during the Covid-19 outbreak. "I lost everything I had worked for," he stated. In a discussion, Tripathi mentioned that in 2021, he noticed a Facebook advertisement featuring a well-known actress that promised large payouts. After experiencing financial difficulties because of the pandemic, he clicked on the ad and installed the Parimatch app. "Initially, the profits seemed promising. This made me think it was real. Soon, representatives from the app reached out to me, urging me to invest more money with the assurance of significant bonuses," he explained.
Over the next three years, Tripathi claims he deposited around Rs 27 crore into the platform but managed to get back only about Rs 15 crore. He lost the remaining Rs 12.22 crore. To recover his losses, he took out extensive loans, worsening his financial situation. "At first, they kept calling me and providing offers. However, when I tried to withdraw larger sums, there was no response," he claimed. Tripathi’s account is supported by Union Minister for Electronics and IT Ashwini Vaishnav's statement that the games are designed in a way that a player wins small amounts at first but then faces substantial and irreversible losses. Sharing his experience, Tripathi lodged a report with the Mumbai Police cyber division, which prompted the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to initiate a nationwide inquiry into Parimatch, an online gaming site.
Recent raids in various cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Kanpur, Noida, Jaipur, Surat, Madurai, and Hyderabad resulted in the freezing of Rs 110 crore, which officials stated were criminal proceeds gathered through mule accounts. As per the ED, the Parimatch operation is run by a Ukrainian individual based in Cyprus, with the business registered in Curacao, a recognized tax haven. Investigators also found over 1,200 credit cards tied to fake accounts, allegedly used to wash deposits. In just one financial year, Parimatch is believed to have made over Rs 3,000 crore from unsuspecting users in India. The investigation also raised concerns about how mule bank accounts were set up without proper examination and why checks for taxation and anti-money laundering were ineffective.
In Tamil Nadu, authorities discovered that cash was being taken out from ATMs linked to these fake accounts. This isn’t the first instance of Parimatch encountering issues in India. In 2023, officials in Mumbai arrested a director of the company for running operations without the necessary GST registration. Investigators connected the company's activities in India to a cryptocurrency trading website based in Noida called IBlock Technologies. The situation has also highlighted the celebrities who have endorsed betting platforms. Previously, Parimatch appointed cricketer Dinesh Karthik as their brand ambassador for their sportswear line, which many viewed as indirect promotion for their betting application. Actors and TV stars also appeared in their promotional content.
Ashwini Vaishnav recently supported the government’s decision to oversee the industry, mentioning, "Millions of Indian families have suffered because of online money games. Savings of the middle class have been lost, and numerous complaints have come in from all over the nation."
On August 20, Parliament approved the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025, which bans advertisements, sponsorships, and indirect promotions of online betting platforms. The new law imposes penalties of up to three years in jail along with fines up to Rs 1 crore for celebrities or influencers backing such platforms. At the same time, Tripathi is having a tough time with increasing debts. He claims that lenders gather outside his office every day, and fake government agents have even asked for bribes to "recover" his money. "I have lost all that I worked for," he stated, encouraging others to steer clear of online betting apps.
