CoinDCX pushes back against fraud claims, says impersonators are to blame
Indian crypto exchange CoinDCX has dismissed allegations linking its founders to a fraud case, saying the matter stems from third parties impersonating the company and using its brand to dupe investors.
What happened
- Media outlet Entrackr reported that CoinDCX founders Sumit Gupta and Neeraj Khandelwal were questioned by police in connection with a crypto investment scam in which people allegedly posed as CoinDCX representatives.
- CoinDCX posted on X that “the FIR filed against our co-founders is false and filed as a conspiracy against CoinDCX by impersonators posing as Founders of CoinDCX and cheating the public at large,” and warned the public that “CoinDCX is being targeted by fraudsters.”
- The exchange says the complainant has no link to its platform and rejected claims that funds were routed through CoinDCX systems. Decrypt has contacted CoinDCX for clarification; the company has not publicly confirmed reports that the founders were arrested.
The alleged scam
- According to reports, a Mumbra-based insurance consultant was lured into a scheme promising 10–12% returns using CoinDCX branding and forged documents. An FIR filed in Thane reportedly names the exchange’s founders among others.
- The complainant claims total losses of about $76,000 (Rs 71.6 lakh) between August 2025 and March, including $28,000 he invested personally; two associates allegedly invested $26,000 and $21,000 respectively.
Industry perspective
- CA Sonu Jain, chief risk and compliance officer at 9Point Capital, told Decrypt this “appears to be a classic case of impersonation fraud,” a pattern he says is increasingly common in India’s crypto sector. He cautioned that founders being summoned for questioning after an FIR is a procedural step and shouldn’t be equated with culpability.
- Jain also flagged a bigger problem: the lack of clear regulatory standards and investor protections in India. He urged regulators to define platform responsibilities, speed up takedowns of fraudulent domains, and formalize coordination between FIU-India, I4C, CERT-In, and exchanges to curb scams.
CoinDCX’s broader response
- The exchange says it is cooperating with law enforcement and stepping up user-awareness efforts. It reported that more than 1,212 fake websites impersonating CoinDCX were detected between April 1, 2024, and January 5, 2026.
- Vedang Vatsa, founder of global crypto community Hashtag Web3, told Decrypt the episode underscores a gap in financial literacy and due diligence among users, builders and regulators.
Context
- The development follows a turbulent year for CoinDCX. In July the exchange disclosed a $44.2 million treasury breach; police later arrested a Bengaluru-based software engineer at the firm accused of enabling attackers to siphon funds from an internal account using compromised credentials.
Bottom line
CoinDCX says it’s the victim of impersonators and is working with authorities, while industry voices stress this incident highlights recurring impersonation risks and the need for stronger regulatory and takedown mechanisms — plus better investor education.
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