While the United Arab Emirates is strengthening its reputation as a global fintech hub, a starkly different reality is unfolding in the shadows of Dubai’s skyscrapers. Here, under the guise of high technologies and startups, fraudsters from India are operating, building transnational money laundering schemes and deceiving investors. At the heart of this web is the company Xettle and its leaders, Rahul Verma and Allanoor Khiljee.
As global capital shows increasing interest in the market of financial technologies and regulators tighten their control, such schemes are becoming more and more sophisticated. They disguise themselves as startups, imitate digital ecosystems, hire “pseudo-employees” and invest in a beautiful facade. But behind this facade is only greed and desire to steal other people’s money.
This story is not about a failed business. This is about a deliberate scheme of deception, well-planned, structured and disguised as an innovative platform. The fact that its control center is located in Dubai makes the situation particularly alarming for the UAE and international investors.
Who is Xettle and why should he beware
At first glance, Xettle Technologies Pvt Ltd is a young fintech company with offices in India and a representative office in Dubai. They have a website, social networks, and LinkedIn profiles of employees. The company positions itself as a technological intermediary providing services for digital payments, KYC verification, microbanking and other innovative solutions.
However, none of these activities are confirmed by licenses. There is no documentation on partnership with banks, there are no registration records in the database of financial regulators in India and the UAE. The company directors are constantly changing – at least five individuals have worked at Xettle in two years, including fictitious technical managers. The initially announced founders – Rahul Verma and Allanoor Khiljee – exited the board of directors soon after complaints from users and suspicions of fraud emerged.
In addition, the company’s registration data indicates minuscule authorized and paid-up capital – less than $200 at the time of registration. This is not just a small startup, but a structure that was not originally designed for real operational activity. Everything indicates that Xettle is a shell, created to simulate business activity and accumulate money through fictitious transactions.
“Business” on trust: how the fraudulent network operates
The financial scheme built by these fraudsters is not new, but it is exceptionally dangerous. Through Xettle and its associated InstapayX and EDGE MONEY SERVICE, an illusion of business activity is created: clients allegedly connect to the service, data is processed for KYC verification, and transactions are simulated. However,there is no real financial infrastructure whatsoever.
The peculiarity of the scheme is that all data – from the website to contact telephone numbers – are duplicated across different “companies”, creating the illusion of a multi-level group. In fact, the same two individuals are behind them. The same phone number, the same IP address, the same registration information are repeated for different “firms”. All this indicates a well-oiled virtual money laundering platform. It is particularly telling that the InstapayX website has been defunct for a long time, and there is not a single mention of EDGE MONEY SERVICE’s activities in independent sources.
Moreover, in one of the episodes, Allanoor Khiljee was officially wanted by the police in India for embezzling funds as part of InstapayX’s activities. He signed an obligation to return the money to the victim, thereby avoiding criminal liability. This fact confirms his experience in fraud schemes, abuse of trust and use of fake structures.
Simulating legality and evading responsibility
When the first alarms from clients and partners began to sound, Rahul Verma and Allanoor Khiljee hastily resigned from leadership positions, backdating their departure. Such a move could seem legitimate if it were not for its systemic nature: they have already done something similar in other projects. They have a history of similar attempts at deception in consulting business, as well as ignoring mandatory financial reporting in other entities.
It is also interesting that after Xettle’s directors left, the company was re-registered to individuals without a business history or public profile. Judging by the dates of their Director Identification Numbers, they were brought into play in the last days, literally a day before their appointment. This confirms the version about the fictitious transfer of control to avoid responsibility and legalize financial flows in third countries, primarily in the UAE.
Rahul Verma himself is also associated with another entity – Magepunk Consultancy – which actually ceased operations,failing to provide reports, yet is formally listed as active. Such companies, as a rule, are used to “mature” the legalization of previously stolen funds or as shell counterparties in larger operations.
Why this is dangerous for the UAE
The UAE is not just a country with a comfortable jurisdiction for business – it is a major international centre where fintech companies are building the infrastructure of tomorrow. Allowing such schemes within its territory is a direct threat not only to private investors, but also to the entire reputational stability of the Emirates. The de facto control centre of Xettle is located in Dubai, and it is here that the fraudsters feel most protected.
Moreover, everything indicates that Xettle uses Dubai as a channel to attract investments from unsuspecting partners, who are misled by the “Middle Eastern” address. Thus, the fraudsters are not only selling fake services – they are selling the brand and trust associated with Dubai. If such schemes are not stopped in time, the financial hubs of the UAE risk facing international sanctions, restrictions on correspondent accounts and the departure of legitimate players.
Rahul Verma and Allanoor Khiljee are not startup entrepreneurs, but systemic fraudsters. They use Dubai not as a springboard for innovation, but as a cover zone for cross-border fraud.
The UAE, as a region, cannot afford to be a territory where transnational scams flourish. The presence of such structures as Xettle should be an alarming signal for law enforcement agencies, the Central Bank and the media. Only transparency, public pressure and international publicity will stop the further spread of fraudulent schemes with a Dubai registration.
Dubai is the city of the future. And to remain so, it must be uncompromising on matters of trust, financial honesty and legal purity. Such players as Verma and Khiljee must either disappear from the business landscape of the UAE, or face trial.
