By Prashant Marathe | EduInvesting.in | 21 May 2025
🕵️ At a Glance:
Everyone knows Nirav Modi. Everyone memes Vijay Mallya. But Nitin Sandesara?
The man who allegedly pulled off a ₹15,000 crore scam, fled the country, and is STILL missing? Barely anyone talks about him.
This is the story of India’s most mysterious billionaire scammer. A man who ghosted banks, regulators, and even the headlines — like a masterclass in financial escapism.
🧬 Who Is Nitin Sandesara?
- Promoter of Sterling Biotech, once a BSE-listed pharma company
- Known for gelatin capsules, not Bitcoin or flashy jets
- Ran a network of companies: Sterling Biotech, Sterling SEZ, Sterling Port, Sterling Oil… basically a Sterling scam universe
🎭 Public Persona:
- Low-profile billionaire
- No Page 3 appearances
- Not even a decent paparazzi scandal. Just pure fraud.
🧨 The Scam: How to Launder ₹15,000 Crore Like a Pro
- Take Loans from 200+ Banks
- Yes, over 200 banks and NBFCs gave them money
- Even Andhra Bank, now merged, was a key lender
- Create Fake Shell Companies
- Dozens of benami firms, registered under employees’ names
- Round-tripped money as fake ‘expenses’ and ‘consulting’
- Forge Documents Like It’s a Hobby
- Bank statements, invoices, income tax filings — all fake
- Bribe Officials
- ED later revealed payoffs to tax officers and bankers
- One of their auditors was caught with ₹1
