In a shocking turn of events, two professionals have been duped out of over Rs 10 crore in a sophisticated IPO scam. The fraud, which involved fake initial public offerings (IPOs), deceived victims by posing as trusted financial institutions like Goldman Sachs and IIFL Securities.
Gopu Venugopala Reddy, a businessman from Kukatpally, fell victim to the scam after receiving a WhatsApp message about joining a ‘Goldman Sachs Business School’ for block trading and preferential IPO access, according to a report by TOI.
Reddy was contacted by a woman who claimed to be an assistant to Goldman Sachs’ managing director. She promised investment opportunities in the Indian stock market through institutional accounts.
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In his complaint, Reddy explained, “She guided me to register for the scheme through a Google form and download a trading app called ‘GSIN’. Following the instructions, I started crediting money into various accounts from January 30 for the purchase of shares in nine companies and to participate in IPOs of four companies.” He transferred a total of 5.9 crore, with transactions indicating a total of 21 crore. When he tried to withdraw his funds, he was told he needed to pay a 20% fee on his profits, amounting to 2.8 crore, to access his money. Realizing he had been scammed, Reddy reported the fraud.
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In a parallel scam, Konduri Hrushikesh, a software consultant from Kondapur, lost 5.2 crore. Hrushikesh joined a WhatsApp group called ‘A117 IIFL SECURITIES Official Stock Community’ after seeing an enticing Facebook update. The group, managed by one Ankur Kedia, who claimed to be IIFL Securities’ chief investment officer, advised Hrushikesh to invest in IPOs through a stockbroking application.
Hrushikesh said, “Between June 9 and July 2, we credited 5.2 crore to their accounts. However, when we tried to withdraw the amounts, we were unable to process any withdrawals. When we contacted customer care, they provided evasive responses and unreasonable excuses, demanding additional funds to process the withdrawal. That’s when we realized we had been scammed.”
Both Reddy and Hrushikesh have reported their cases to the Cyber Crime Helpline. Investigations are ongoing to track down the fraudsters and recover the stolen funds.
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