ED attaches Rs. 52 crore worth Dubai properties in major bank fraud case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) announced on Tuesday that its Bhopal Zonal Office has attached nine luxurious immovable properties in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

A senior ED official stated that the attached properties, comprising apartments and commercial spaces, are valued at approximately Rs. 51.70 crore. “The action is part of an investigation into a bank fraud case involving Advantage Overseas Private Limited (AOPL), its directors, guarantors, and other related individuals, including its main director and significant beneficial owner, Shrikant Bhasi. The fraud caused a wrongful loss of Rs. 1,266.63 crore to the State Bank of India (SBI). The attached properties belong to Shrikant Bhasi, who had gifted them to his daughter,” the official said.

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These foreign assets, located in Centurion Residence – Dubai Investment Park Second, Dubai Silicon Oasis, Liwa Heights (Al Thanyah Fifth), Business Bay, and World Trade Centre Residences, were found to have been acquired using the “Proceeds of Crime” (POC) generated from the bank fraud. The SBI’s Shahpura Branch suffered a massive loss due to the scheme.

The ED’s investigation revealed that Shrikant Bhasi, who held strategic control over AOPL and its associated entities, acquired the Dubai properties. These assets were later deliberately gifted to his daughter through gift deeds executed in 2022–2023 without any financial consideration, in an apparent attempt to conceal the illicit origin of the funds. The properties were purchased with money generated by AOPL and its group entities through illegal merchanting trade transactions, diversion of bank funds, document fabrication, circular trading, and the layering of illicit proceeds.

During the investigation, it was discovered that 12 Foreign Letters of Credit (FLCs), amounting to USD 200 million (approximately Rs. 1,266.63 crore), devolved upon the SBI between April and May 2018. This occurred after AOPL failed to fulfil mandatory margin requirements and could not infuse funds at the time of the LC rollover. Due to the depletion of fixed deposit margins and the company’s failure to honour its obligations, the bank was forced to make payments to overseas suppliers, resulting in a substantial loss for the public sector bank. These devolved LCs represent a major component of the POC, which was subsequently layered and laundered through related entities to acquire foreign assets.

The ED has also uncovered a network of domestic and foreign entities used to layer and divert funds for acquiring assets in India and abroad.

Further investigation into the matter is ongoing.