New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday questioned Yes Bank co-founder Rana Kapoor in connection with an ongoing money laundering investigation involving companies of the Reliance Anil Ambani Group (ADAG), officials said.
Kapoor’s statement was recorded under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) as part of the probe into alleged financial irregularities linked to loans and investments made by Yes Bank. Officials indicated that investigators are examining suspected quid pro quo arrangements between Kapoor and Anil Ambani during the period under scrutiny.
This is not the first time Kapoor, 68, has been questioned by the ED. He was earlier arrested and examined in separate money laundering cases related to the alleged irregular sanctioning and disbursal of loans during his tenure as the head of Yes Bank.
According to officials, Yes Bank’s exposure to ADAG entities stood at around ₹6,000 crore as of March 31, 2017, but nearly doubled to approximately ₹13,000 crore within a year. The companies currently under investigation include Reliance Home Finance Limited (RHFL) and Reliance Commercial Finance Limited (RCFL).
Investigators allege that a substantial portion of these investments later turned into non-performing investments, resulting in losses of about ₹3,300 crore for the bank. The ED claims these transactions were not routine business deals but were allegedly part of a quid pro quo arrangement, under which ADAG firms extended loans to entities linked to Kapoor’s family.
The agency is also probing alleged private meetings between Kapoor and Ambani concerning these financial transactions. The investigation primarily covers the 2017–2019 period, during which Yes Bank is said to have invested ₹2,965 crore in RHFL instruments and ₹2,045 crore in RCFL. By December 2019, these investments reportedly became non-performing.
Officials further stated that the probe has revealed that RHFL and RCFL received public funds exceeding ₹11,000 crore, with outstanding amounts of ₹1,353.5 crore and ₹1,984 crore respectively at the time they slipped into default.
Anil Ambani, 66, has previously been questioned by the ED in connection with alleged banking irregularities involving group companies. The Reliance Group has consistently maintained that Ambani was not involved in the day-to-day management of its firms.
There was no immediate response from Rana Kapoor or his legal representatives on Monday regarding the latest round of questioning. The ED recently attached assets worth ₹1,120 crore belonging to certain Anil Ambani Group companies as part of the same investigation.
