How ICICI Bank RM stole Rs 4.6 cr from customers - and what you must learn

In a shocking case of internal bank fraud, an ex-ICICI Bank relationship manager in Kota, Rajasthan, has been arrested for stealing Rs 4.58 crore from over 110 customer accounts — many of them senior citizens — over a period of nearly three years. The fraud, which went undetected for months, highlights the urgent need for personal finance vigilance, especially in the digital banking era.
Such was the extent of her obsession with stock market trading that the 26-year-old Sakhi Gupta went to shocking lengths — allegedly siphoning off Rs 4.58 crore from unsuspecting customers, including even her own father-in-law. The funds were reportedly diverted into high-risk futures and options (F&O) trading, in a desperate bid to profit from speculative market movements.
According to police, Gupta has been pilfering from more that 110 accounts belonging to 41 customers for around two years at the Kota branch. She allegedly invested this amount in the stock market and lost the majority of it.
How did the fraud occur?
According to police and internal bank investigations, the accused, Sakshi Gupta, misused her access to break customer FDs prematurely, create overdrafts, sanction loans, and reroute funds to her personal trading accounts. She allegedly:
Broke 31 FDs worth Rs 1.34 crore without informing customers.
By changing mobile numbers to relatives' lines, she prevented customers from receiving alerts and hiding transactions
Stolen money was routed through a 'pool account' (one elderly customer's account with over ₹3 crore) before being transferred to her demat/trading accounts.
All ₹4.58 crore were invested in F&O trades via apps like Zerodha and ICICI Direct, but she reportedly lost the entire amount
How the scam unfolded:
According to the police investigation, the relationship manager broke fixed deposits (FDs) prematurely, created overdraft facilities, and even took personal loans in the names of unsuspecting customers — all without their consent or knowledge. The fraudulent transactions spanned over months and were cleverly hidden using manipulated entries in the bank's internal systems.
She exploited her access to ICICI Bank's Insta Kiosk and digital banking channels to carry out these unauthorized transactions, betraying the trust of both the bank and its customers.
What's more worrying: she reportedly manipulated entries in ICICI Bank's internal software to cover her tracks, making it difficult for both customers and internal auditors to detect any red flags.
The police also alleged that Gupta misused debit cards, PINs, and OTPs for these transactions, and even activated overdraft facilities on 40 accounts without consent. In addition to this, she permanently closed fixed deposits of 31 customers and funneled over Rs. 1.34 crore, while also taking a personal loan of Rs. 3.40 lakh.
What Is a pool account, and why it matters?
A pool account is typically used to consolidate funds from various sources. In this fraud:
She collected money from broken FDs, overdrafts, and fake loans into one account.
From there, funds were easily routed to her personal investment accounts.
This minimized red flags, since transactions were less scattered and easier to manage.
By centralizing transactions, she avoided the complexity and detection risks associated with moving money through 40+ accounts.
Who were the victims?
Most of the victims were elderly customers, many of whom relied on FDs as a source of post-retirement income. They remained unaware as alerts were rerouted and their bank accounts tampered with behind the scenes.
A customer complaint about a missing FD triggered an internal audit by ICICI, leading to a branch manager filing an FIR on February 18, 2023, and her arrest in May 2025.
What did ICICI Bank do?
ICICI Bank filed an FIR and confirmed that all affected customers have been compensated. The bank has since strengthened internal controls, but the incident raises serious questions about employee oversight and customer protection. An ICICI Bank spokesperson, in a press note, said that the interest of costumes is most important and upon discovering the activities the bank immediately filed an FIR. "We have a zero-tolerance policy against any fraudulent activity,' they said, adding that the employee has been suspended and genuine claims of impacted customers have been settled.
Key red flags:
FDs were closed without OTPs being triggered.
No transaction alerts were received by customers due to outdated contact details.
Customers only realized something was wrong after significant sums were gone
What this means for you?
If you're a bank customer:
Check your alerts: Ensure your mobile number and email are updated with your bank to receive all transaction notifications.
Monitor FD and loan activity: Unexpected closure of FDs or creation of overdrafts should raise red flags.
Review bank statements regularly, especially if you're a senior citizen or non-tech-savvy.
Immediately report any suspicious changes (like mobile number alterations or OTP behavior) to your bank's fraud cell.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Indian Express

25 minutes ago

• Indian Express

Solution to import dependence on vegetable oil does not lie in hiking MSP

India's pulses and vegetable oil imports touched a record 7.3 million tonnes (mt) and 16.4 mt, valued at $5.5 billion and $17.3 billion respectively, in 2024-25. Some of that may have had to do with the strong El Niño-induced drought of 2023-24, whose effects on food inflation extended right up to December 2024. It forced large-scale imports — in the case of pulses, from an average of 2.6 million during 2018-19 to 2022-23 to 4.7 mt and 7.3 mt in the following two fiscals. But the same cannot be said about vegetable oil imports, which have more than doubled from 7.9 mt in 2013-14. It's quite possible that pulses imports will reduce considerably in the current fiscal, assuming a normal monsoon. But that's unlikely with vegetable oils, where rising imports have attained a structural inevitability similar to petroleum crude and natural gas. In pulses, scientists have bred shorter-duration chana (chickpea) and photo-thermo insensitive moong (green gram) varieties, enabling farmers to grow these with minimal irrigation or in all four seasons. Much of the increased domestic pulses production after 2015-16, notwithstanding the setbacks of the last two years, has been courtesy of chana and moong. It has, then, limited the need for imports mainly to arhar (pigeon-pea) and urad (black gram): In a normal year, India can produce roughly 90 per cent of its consumption requirement. Such effort has been woefully lacking in oilseeds. Take soyabean, where the average per-hectare yield in India is hardly one tonne, compared to 2.6 tonnes in Argentina and 3.4-3.5 tonnes in Brazil and the US. Not allowing genetic modification in soyabean or mustard, with potential for raising yields, hasn't helped either. It's not surprising that the import dependence in vegetable oils is well over 60 per cent — and, at the current pace, set to rise further. The solution does not lie in hiking minimum support prices (MSP). MSPs have no meaning unless accompanied by physical procurement as with rice and wheat. But even that has limitations. The latest MSP for soyabean, at Rs 5,328 per quintal or $615 per tonne, is way above the landed cost of $400-450 for the same from Brazil and the US. What the government can do is to assure oilseeds and pulses farmers of a minimum income support, while setting this at a reasonable level that incentivises them to grow and even expand acreages under these crops. But there is no substitute ultimately for increasing yields and reducing cultivation costs — which has unfortunately not happened in oilseeds, unlike with rice, wheat or sugarcane.

Scroll.in

29 minutes ago

• Scroll.in

Prajwal Bhat

Stories written by Can Zohran Mamdani, the first South Asian to run to be New York mayor, pull off an upset? He's got slick campaign videos and a progressive agenda. But can the 33-year-old politician convince voters that he's got what it takes to run the complex city? Prajwal Bhat · 20 minutes ago Firms linked to Keventer group bought electoral bonds worth Rs 600 crore while it faced ED probe This would make the Keventer group the third-largest purchaser of the bonds. Prajwal Bhat , Sachi & Project Electoral Bond · Mar 15, 2024 · 08:21 pm

Hans India

41 minutes ago

• Hans India

AP to halve logistics costs with Rs 20,000 cr infra push

Visakhapatnam: Minister for Roads and Buildings, Infrastructure and Investments BC Janardhan Reddy has underscored that the state is moving forward with a clear vision to emerge as South Asia's logistics gateway. He was speaking at the Ports and Logistics Conference, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry in Visakhapatnam on Friday. The conference focused on unlocking the state's port potential, improving last-mile connectivity and promoting multimodal logistics integration. The Minister highlighted that Andhra Pradesh's ports now contributed over 5 per cent to the state's GSDP, supporting nearly one million jobs. Visakhapatnam Port alone handled 82.62 million tonnes in FY 2024–25, while the Krishnapatnam and Gangavaram ports together handled over 54 million tonnes, reflecting robust growth and private participation. The Minister observed that the government was investing over Rs.20,000 crore to improve connectivity through 1,040-km of new highways and major corridors like Badvel-Nellore and the VCIC rail line. 'Andhra Pradesh wants to cut logistics costs by half with Rs.20,000 crore infrastructure push,' the Minister underlined. The Chairman of Andhra Pradesh Maritime Board D, Satyanarayana, highlighted that Andhra Pradesh was strategically building a robust port-led development model with six operational ports and three new greenfield ports at Machilipatnam, Ramayapatnam, and Bhavanapadu. He shared that these were not being developed in isolation, but as part of integrated logistics and industrial corridors, fully connected through road, rail, and multimodal networks. The Chairperson of Visakhapatnam Port Authority, M Angamuthu, emphasised that Andhra Pradesh had the right foundations to emerge as a maritime entrepreneurship hub, with its strategic location, proactive governance, and well-established port network. He noted that most major ports in the state were currently operating at just 50 per cent capacity, indicating significant untapped potential. The Chairman of CII, G Murali Krishna, highlighted that ports were no longer just trade enablers but strategic national assets influencing diplomacy, jobs, and regional growth. He shared that Andhra Pradesh's balanced economy and strong policy incentives had already attracted Rs.9.2 lakh crore in investments.