How Parimatch's celebrity ads lured businessman to ₹12cr loss
Ajit Tripathi, a Mumbai businessman, lost ₹12.22 crore to the illegal betting platform Parimatch between 2021 and 2025 after being tempted by celebrity ads promising big returns.
He deposited nearly ₹27 crore but could only recover ₹15 crore.
According to Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnav, the platform's algorithm gives players small wins at first, then traps them in mounting losses.
When he tried to withdraw larger amounts, his requests were ignored—so he reported the fraud to Mumbai Police.
Tripathi's complaint leads to ED probe
Tripathi's complaint sparked a nationwide Enforcement Directorate (ED) probe into Parimatch.
The ED raided multiple locations in cities across India, freezing ₹110 crore in mule accounts and discovering over 1,200 credit cards linked to fraudulent accounts.
Parimatch—run from Cyprus by a Ukrainian national—allegedly generated over ₹3,000 crore from Indian users in just one year.
Meanwhile, Tripathi remains heavily in debt and is now being harassed by scammers posing as officials demanding bribes.
To fight such scams going forward, Parliament has passed a new bill banning ads for illegal betting platforms and tightening regulations around online gaming.