ED Targets OctaFX and Unravels India’s Largest Online Trading Frauds:

ED Targets OctaFX and Unravels India’s Largest Online Trading Frauds The online cryptocurrency industry is rapidly increasing in india, attracting a large number of investors and users. However, apart from this expansion, many platforms have begun exploiting the system for fraudulent purposes. Cases of fake shell companies, fake documents and others are raising concerns about security and transparency. Due to such cases, ED has started investigating illegal online trading platforms. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has recently been looking into OctaFX, an illegal online trading website, for moving thousands of crores out of India using cryptocurrencies and international payment systems. In just nine months, this platform made Rs 800 crore by pretending to offer import services. In 2024, Indians lost more than Rs 22,800 crore in similar financial scams.

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Its promoters are based in Russia, technical support in Georgia, its India operations are handled from Dubai, and the servers are in Barcelona. Some of the transactions were layered through "fake import of services" from Singapore to launder duped funds generated in India. In a special scenario, ED has attached Rs 172 crore worth of assets in India and abroad, including:

• A yacht
• A villa in Spain
• Rs 36 crore in banks
• 39,000 cryptocurrency (USDT)
• Land and Demat holding of Rs 8 crore

OctaFX, which is being investigated by the ED’s Mumbai office, is not the only illegal online platform involved in investment scams. Other platforms under investigation include Power Bank (Bengaluru office), Angel One, TM Traders, Vivan Li (Kolkata office), and Zara FX (Kochi office). These cases are based on multiple FIRs filed by police in different cities. The ED’s study found that cyber frauds in the name of cryptocurrency included companies like Birfa IT and related firms. These acted as brokers, moving large amounts of money in and out of crypto to help clients send funds to China for under-invoiced imports, laundering the money via cryptocurrency. In the Birfa case, the probe found that Rs 4,818 crore was sent to Hong Kong and Canadian entities controlled by scammers, supposedly to pay for server leases and other services, using fake invoices. In 2024, Indians lost over Rs 22,800 crore in around 36.4 lakh financial fraud cases- more than double the Rs 7,464 crore lost in 2023 and over 50% more cases than the 24.4 lakh reported the previous year, according to an ED report. While many of these illegal transactions went through international payment gateways, some of the money was laundered through hawala networks. In some cases, the ED found that the funds were brought back to India disguised as legitimate stock market investments.

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Investigations into a similar cyber investment scam showed that the masterminds, operating from Laos, Hong Kong, and Thailand, hired agents in India to create fake companies using forged documents. They issued fake IPO allotments, fake stock market investments, and even staged fake digital arrests. The money collected through these shell companies was converted into cryptocurrency and sent overseas as payment for fake “import services”.