02 Mar , 2026 By : Debdeep Gupta
The sharp early sell-off in Fino Payments Bank stock followed the bank’s disclosure that Gupta had been arrested under the GST law. But later, Fino clarified that the arrest was linked to an investigation involving certain business partners and was not related to the bank’s own compliance.
Shares of Fino Payments Bank erased all intraday losses to trade marginally in the green on Tuesday, recovering sharply after sliding as much as 14 percent in early trade on concerns linked to the arrest of its Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Rishi Gupta.
The Fino Payments Bank stock was trading at Rs 192.7 in morning deals, up 0.3 percent on the day, after hitting a day’s low that implied a near-15 percent fall. At the current price, the stock is down about 10.7 percent over the past one year, with the bank’s market capitalisation at around Rs 1,600 crore.
The sharp early sell-off in Fino Payments Bank stock followed the bank’s disclosure that Gupta had been arrested under the goods and services tax law. In a late-Friday filing, Fino clarified that the arrest was linked to an investigation involving certain business partners and was not related to the bank’s own GST compliance. In subsequent disclosures to exchanges on Monday, the lender said the probe pertained to programme managers associated with multiple banks.
Addressing analysts in a conference call, the bank’s management said it has put in place enhanced monitoring and prudential buffers to ensure stability, according to the Informist. Chief Financial Officer Ketan Merchant, who has been appointed Head of the Organisation in Gupta’s absence, reiterated that the investigation relates to alleged GST issues involving programme managers and not the bank.
“As part of their investigation, authorities have alleged his involvement in relation to provisions of real money gaming services by a partner entity and the alleged under-reporting of GST,” Merchant said, adding that the bank and Gupta, in his official capacity, have no role in the business operations of the programme manager in question. Claims regarding GST liability of the bank are “completely baseless and factually incorrect,” he said, citing a positive view from legal advisers.
The development comes just a month after the Reserve Bank of India approved Gupta’s reappointment as MD and CEO. Separately, Fino had received regulatory approval in December to convert into a small finance bank, which would allow it to accept larger deposits and offer credit products.
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