India, March 30 -- The year began with a bang for Fino Payments Bank when the Reserve Bank of India cleared Rishi Gupta's reappointment as MD and CEO for another three years, sending shares up nearly 9% to Rs.227 on January 28. 

In less than 30 days, the bank went from regulatory validation into a full-blown crisis. Investor confidence rattled, stock got derailed, and clouds of uncertainty started looming over its small finance bank ambitions.

Reason? Gupta's arrest and subsequent protracted hearings before the eventual bail this week.

On February 27, Gupta was handcuffed by the Hyderabad unit of the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI) on charges of alleged GST evasion under the CGST and state GST laws.

The DGGI allege...