ICICI Bank duped of ₹23cr in gold loan scam
What's the story
ICICI Bank has been embroiled in a major ₹23 crore gold loan scam, which was unearthed during an internal audit. The audit revealed that fake ornaments had been pledged across nine of its branches in Nagpur. Acting on a complaint by Dhananjay Ramesh Thite, an employee at the bank's zonal office, the Dhantoli police have registered a case of fraud and launched an investigation into the matter.
Scam
Around 200 account holders were involved
The fraudulent scheme is said to have been carried out between January 2023 and October 2025. The scam came to light when ICICI Bank's internal audit of its 'Gold Loan' portfolio found that ornaments pledged across nine branches were not real gold, but fake. Reports suggest that a total of 195 account holders were involved in these fraudulent loans.
Insider investigation
Police probing possible involvement of bank employees
The police are now probing the possible involvement of bank employees or officials in this scam. They suspect that it would have been impossible to secure loans of such a large amount without the approval from valuers who verify gold purity. The investigation is ongoing as authorities try to get to the bottom of this massive fraud case.