The Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Shillong Sub-Zonal Office, has provisionally attached assets worth ₹17.91 crore under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, in connection with a large-scale fraudulent investment scheme linked to the website www.pearlvine.com operating under the banner of Pearlvine International. The attachment, carried out on 10/12/2025, comprises 13 immovable and seven movable properties, including luxury cars allegedly acquired from proceeds of crime.
The ED initiated the investigation following an FIR registered by the CID, Meghalaya Police, based on a complaint lodged by the Reserve Bank of India, Shillong, and a charge sheet filed under various sections of the IPC, 1860. The probe revealed that Pearlvine International was an unrecognized entity falsely claiming to be US-based and had operated a Ponzi scheme in India from 2018 till March 2023. The entity offered multiple lucrative investment options, collected a minimum membership fee of ₹2,250, and aggressively expanded its network by organising seminars across the country. At its peak in 2022, the company claimed a membership of nearly 80 lakh members in India and abroad.
According to the ED, Pearlvine International collected at least ₹1,575 crore from investors, out of which at least ₹395.35 crore was not returned. The investigation established that Neeraj Kumar Gupta was the key person behind the scam and had purchased the domain www.pearlvine.com in November 2015. He also conducted several promotional seminars of Pearlvine International in India as well as in Thailand. With the latest attachment, the total value of assets attached by the ED in the case has reached ₹54.98 crore, including an earlier attachment of ₹37.07 crore, while further investigation is under progress.
