In an alarming development, the authorities in India are grappling with the escalating prevalence of overseas gaming and betting applications that are evading taxes in the country.
The GST probe has found out that these firms are converting earnings into cryptocurrency and utilizing networks of shell companies.
According to a report in The Times of India, at the epicenter of one of the largest such networks currently under investigation is Parimatch, a Cyprus-based group that even advertises during local sports leagues on television.
The Directorate General of Goods & Services Tax Intelligence (DGGI) in Mumbai has recently succeeded in uncovering and dismantling one such network linked to Parimatch. This network was responsible for accumulating Rs 700 crore from Indian users of gaming apps, with the funds subsequently being channeled out through cryptocurrency conversion. The DGGI meticulously tracked the network’s operations over several months, scrutinizing the backgrounds of 50 entities and individuals in Delhi, and 350 in Kolkata, according to the TOI report.
The majority of these gaming companies, which are headquartered in tax havens and are illicitly conducting business within India, employ complex layers of communication and transactions that span international jurisdictions, allowing them to evade legal action.
Dubai plays a pivotal role in facilitating fund flows through cryptocurrencies. Workers for these applications receive online remuneration without formal contracts. Notably, Parimatch exclusively interacts with its Indian contacts through email, phone calls, or unidentified intermediaries, Times of India reported.
TOI added that the DGGI apprehended the director of an unregistered payment aggregator that facilitated the collection of funds in shell company accounts from users of Parimatch’s gaming and betting services. The accumulated funds were subsequently transferred from the payment aggregator to the bank accounts of shell companies, which resulted in the freezing of more than 400 bank accounts in the process.
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