
Fino Payments Bank CEO & MD Rishi Gupta Arrested; CFO Ketan Merchant To Oversee Operations
Fino Payments Bank said on Friday that its Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director (CEO & MD), Rishi Gupta, has been arrested under provisions of the CGST Act, 2017, and SGST Act, 2017. The Board has appointed Chief Financial Officer Ketan Merchant as Head of the Organisation to manage day-to-day operations until further decision.
The bank stated that the investigation relates to its business partners and not to its GST compliance. It said none of its officials are involved and that it is cooperating with authorities. The bank added that there is no impact on its operations or financial position at present.
Gupta has been associated with the institution since its early stages and is a founding member of Fino Paytech, the bank’s parent company. He led the bank to profitability within three years of its launch in 2017 and oversaw its listing on Indian stock exchanges in November 2021, becoming the first payments bank to be listed. Gupta represents the bank at the Payments Council of India and has worked on expanding digital banking services in rural markets.
Merchant joined Fino Payments Bank in 2018 and currently serves as Chief Financial Officer. Before joining the bank, he worked with HSBC, Standard Chartered, and Barclays in India and overseas. He has 25 years of banking experience. At Fino, he oversees finance, balance sheet management, and governance functions. He has been involved in shaping the bank’s strategy since its early years and played a role in its listing in 2021. He has also worked on implementing the bank’s DDD strategy, focused on data, distribution, and digital initiatives, under the Fino 2.0 plan.




