Odisha EOW Freezes Rs 1.45 Cr In Illegal Digital Lending Case

Bhubaneswar: The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Odisha police has frozen Rs.1.45 crores lying in bank accounts of Director of Right Start Business Pvt Ltd Nitin Malik, who is in jail after being arrested in July in an illegal digital lending case.

The case was registered following allegation of harassment, extortion and mental torture by the recovery agents of the Digital Loan App “Kredit Gold” by sending  humiliating, abusive messages and morphed photographs.

The EOW had received a series of complaints from victims and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) relating to illegal functioning of loan apps which are not registered as NBFC under RBI act.

Good Start Business Pvt Ltd and Right Start Business Pvt Ltd of which accused Nitin Malik is the Director, are not registered as NBFC with RBI. The companies are illegally operating as digital lender. It is suspected that this international gang is running at least 10 such illegal loan apps. This is worth to mention that there are more than one lakh downloads of “Kredit Gold” app, EOW said in a press note.

The accused became the Director of Good Start Business Pvt. Ltd. and Right Start Business Pvt. Ltd. at the instance and connivance of some Chinese mastermind/bosses.

The main objective of said company is to purchase and run virtual phone numbers from BSNL, Airtel and Vodafone to be used for running and facilitating the lending and recovery through different loan apps. Malik was in direct and regular touch with at least three Chinese nationals and used to get huge sum/salary for this job.

The accused was arrested in July and he is still in judicial custody. Another accused Neerav Gupta has also been arrested in the case and now in judicial custody.