ED Alleges Parimatch Moved Nearly ₹3,000 Crore Abroad Via Layered Network
India's Enforcement Directorate alleges the Cyprus-headquartered platform Parimatch generated around ₹3,000 crore from Indian users in 2023-24 and sent the proceeds overseas through layered financial transactions, according to officials quoted in Hindustan Times.
The claims are allegations from officials and have not been tested in court. Online real-money gambling is banned in India under the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act 2025. The detail comes from a Hindustan Times report published on October 21, 2026.
The Investigation So Far
The agency's Mumbai unit searched 17 locations across seven states and union territories on August 12, 2025, in a money laundering probe into Parimatch and associated entities. Investigators seized more than 1,200 credit cards from a single location and froze ₹110 crore held in bank accounts that officials describe as mule accounts.
A new round of searches on September 2, 2026 across five states and a union territory froze a further ₹37 crore in similar accounts. HT puts the total frozen or seized at roughly ₹150 crore, and officials say the full extent of proceeds of crime is still being estimated. The case rests on a complaint registered by Mumbai cyber police.
How The Money Allegedly Moved
Officials told HT that deposits first went through around 500 mule bank accounts across the country, many opened in the names of e-commerce and payment firms and onboarded as merchant accounts. The funds were then layered through ordinary commercial channels and described as vendor payments, business transactions or payment gateway services.
In southern India, deposits were allegedly withdrawn in cash in Tamil Nadu and passed to hawala operators, who funded virtual wallets linked to a UK-based company. The money was then converted into USDT through accounts run by Parimatch agents. In western India, officials say RBI-approved domestic money transfer agents collected deposits and moved funds through credit card transactions.
The ED also flagged payment companies whose payment aggregator licence applications were rejected by the RBI. Officials say they supplied backend services as technology service providers and gave API access to plug mule accounts into the platform.
Retailers, Travel Firms And Sham Investments
The agency alleges some user withdrawals were paid without any outward transfer from platform-controlled accounts. Instead, deposits from other users were routed to the withdrawing player's bank account or UPI ID in several tranches, which hid the money trail.
Banking correspondent networks, mobile money agents, Grahak Seva Kendras, cash management service agents and local kirana stores were also used for payouts, officials said. Retailers received money, passed it on to a banking correspondent who recharged their wallets, and then paid out users from those wallets.
Funds also allegedly passed through the accounts of tour and travel operators without any service provided, with at least ₹200 crore routed through two such firms. A parallel mechanism using sham overseas direct investment and bogus imports of services allegedly layered and remitted ₹500 crore abroad, backed by sham valuation reports. HT said Parimatch, a popular betting site in the UK, could not be reached for comment despite several attempts.
HT reports the platform is owned by a Ukrainian national, and officials say it was promoted heavily in India through sports sponsorships, celebrity tie-ups and surrogate advertising by Indian-registered entities funded by foreign remittances.
