ED Arrests Former Axis MF Dealer Viresh Joshi in ₹200 Crore Front-Running Scam

Mumbai, August 3, 2025 — In a sweeping operation targeting financial market malpractice, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Viresh Gangaram Joshi, former chief dealer of Axis Mutual Fund, for his alleged role in a ₹200 crore front-running scam that took place between 2018 and 2021. The arrest is part of a probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and follows coordinated searches across eight major cities.

Joshi is accused of exploiting privileged information about Axis Mutual Fund’s upcoming trades to execute pre-emptive transactions using mule accounts and a Dubai-based trading terminal, thereby generating illicit gains at the expense of ordinary investors. Axis Mutual Fund, one of India’s largest asset management firms, currently handles over ₹2 lakh crore in assets.

The ED initiated the investigation after the Mumbai Police filed an FIR in December 2024. The probe revealed that Joshi and his associates used a web of shell companies and front accounts to launder the proceeds of crime (PoC). So far, over ₹200 crore in illicit profits has been traced, although officials suggest the final figure may be substantially higher.

ED officials stated that Joshi was not operating in isolation. Several brokers and traders who allegedly received advance knowledge of Axis MF’s trading activity are now under investigation. The front-running activity severely undermined market integrity and investor confidence, said a senior official.

During searches conducted on August 1 and 2 in Delhi, Mumbai, Gurugram, Ludhiana, Ahmedabad, Bhavnagar, Bhuj, and Kolkata, the ED seized and froze assets worth ₹17.4 crore, including shares, mutual funds, and bank balances.

Joshi was arrested on August 2 and presented in court, which remanded him to ED custody until August 8. Officials say further arrests are likely as the investigation deepens into one of the most significant insider trading scandals in India’s mutual fund sector.