Two held in Rs 850 crore ponzi scheme case in Telangana; 6000 individuals duped

Hyderabad: Two persons were arrested in connection with a Rs 850 crore Ponzi scheme involving Falcon Invoice Discounting Platform, which allegedly duped over 6,000 depositors across the country, police said here on Sunday.

The accused allegedly deceived the public by persuading them to make short-term deposits with the promise of high returns, they said.

According to the police, the primary accused, Amardeep Kumar (Managing Director, Falcon Capital Ventures Pvt Ltd), along with Aryan Singh (Chief Operating Officer) and Yogender Singh (Chief Executive Officer), who are still at large, lured depositors by promising high returns on short-term deposits under the guise of invoice discounting.

So far, 19 people have been named as accused in the case and out of them two were arrested, and others are absconding, a police official said.

During the investigation, the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Cyberabad on February 15 arrested--Pavan Kumar – Vice President of Capital Protection Force Pvt Ltd and Business Head of Falcon Invoice Discounting Platform, along with Kavya N, Director of Capital Protection Force Pvt Ltd and Falcon Capital Ventures Pvt Ltd.

On the modus operandi, a release from Cyberabad Police Commissionerate said the accused launched a mobile application and website, falsely presenting Falcon Invoice Discounting Platform as a legitimate peer-to-peer invoice discounting service.

They claimed to connect depositors with reputed companies while in reality, they fabricated vendor profiles and fake deals to create an illusion of authenticity, police said.

Total deposits to the tune of Rs 1,700 crore were collected and out of which Rs 850 crore was repaid to the investors, while the rest (outstanding fraudulent amount Rs 850 crore) was to be paid to as many as 6,979 depositors, police said.

The accused promised returns of 11–22 per cent per annum and the deposit range was between Rs 25,000 to Rs 9 lakh. The maturity period was of 45 to 180 days.

"The accused were involved in a large-scale financial fraud amounting to Rs 850 crore, orchestrated through Falcon Invoice Discounting Platform under Capital Protection Force Pvt Ltd and its associated entities," Deputy Commissioner of Police (EOW) K Prasad said.

Operating since 2021, the accused continuously recruited new depositors to pay returns to earlier investors, forming a Ponzi scheme.

The funds collected were diverted into various shell companies. By January 15, 2025, the scheme collapsed, promised returns were halted, and the office in Hyderabad was shut down, prompting depositors to lodge complaints with the police.

A case under relevant sections of BNS and Telangana State Protection of Depositors of Financial Establishment Act, 1999 was registered.

Police further said depositors’ funds were misappropriated to acquire and establish multiple companies, including Cryptocurrency platform, IT software development, Multi-level marketing schemes, luxury hospitality, private charter services and real estate investments.

Police said they were actively investigating to trace and recover misappropriated funds, and identify additional individuals involved in the fraud.