PB Fintech said the GST department raided one of its subsidiaries on Sunday but did not mention if the action was taken against Policybazaar or Paisabazaar
The insurtech major said the the DGGI Gurugram conducted a search and enquired about some of its vendors
In 2023, the DGGI had sent notices to scores of insurance players, including Policybazaar, Go Digit, among others, for alleged GST evasion to the tune of INR 2,250 Cr
The Goods and Services Tax (GST) department conducted a raid on a wholly-owned subsidiary of insurtech major PB Fintech on Sunday (December 13).
In an exchange filing, the company said the Gurugram zonal unit of the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI) conducted a search and inquiry in connection with some of the vendors of one of its subsidiaries.
Sources told Inc42 that the raid was in relation to PB Partners, the fintech major’s platform for insurance agents.
The company is being investigated for alleged tax evasion of about INR 80 Cr to INR 90 Cr, and the GST officials reviewed the financial records and GST filings during the raid.
Notably, PB Partners provides insurance and financial services as part of PB Fintech’s broader operations.
In 2023, the DGGI had sent notices to scores of insurance players, including Policybazaar, Go Digit, and HDFC Bank among others, for alleged GST evasion to the tune of INR 2,250 Cr.
The notices reportedly alleged that these companies issued fake invoices for many insurance companies between 2018 and March 2022, without providing any service, which is a punishable offence under GST norms.
Even Paisabazaar came under the scanner of Income Tax authorities last year for alleged regulatory lapses and non-compliance with know your customer (KYC) norms.
Shares of PB Fintech were trading 1.84% higher at INR 1,729 apiece on the BSE at 10:43 AM.
The insurtech major informed the bourses today (January 14) that it was cooperating with the investigation and provided all information required by GST officials. The company said it does not expect the GST action to affect its operations.
This comes at a time when GST officials are tightening their noose on rampant tax evasion across the country. Last week, Inc42 exclusively reported that the DGGI raided insurance tech major InsurDekho’s headquarters in Gurugram for alleged tax evasion.
Online gaming companies, including Gameskraft, Dream11, and Games 24×7, were issued 71 show-cause notices for alleged evasion of GST amounting to INR 1.12 Lakh Cr during 2022-23 and the first seven months of 2023-24.
However, the Supreme Court stayed the GST proceedings against 49 real gaming startups last week, giving them interim relief.
[With inputs from Lokesh Choudhary]