New Delhi: Anil Ambani is planning to legally move against the Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) over the body imposed a ban of five years on him along with 24 other entities and imposed a fine of Rs 25 crore.
Anil Ambani's spokesperson informed the move after SEBI recently initiated the ban against him, accusing him of misappropriation of funds. The spokesperson clarified that Anil Ambani is reviewing SEBI's final order, and appropriate follow-up action will be taken as per legal advice. He added that Anil had resigned from the board of Reliance Infrastructure and Reliance Power as per SEBI's interim order on the same issue.
On August 22, SEBI banned Anil Ambani and 24 others from the stock market. Anil Ambani was also fined Rs 25 crore for planning to divert funds from Reliance Group's Reliance Home Finance. Anil Ambani cannot carry out any transaction, including buying and selling, in the stock market based on the order.
According to SEBI's 222-page final order, Anil Ambani, leveraging his role as the chairman of the ADA Group and his indirect shareholding in RHFL's holding company, executed a fraudulent scheme. He collaborated with RHFL's key managerial personnel to siphon off funds by disguising them as loans to entities linked to him.
Despite strong directives from RHFL's Board of Directors to cease such lending practices, the company's management, influenced by Ambani, continued these activities. This neglect highlights a severe governance failure within the company, driven by key managerial personnel under Ambani's control.
SEBI's investigation revealed that the funds were diverted to companies that were either recipients of the illegally obtained loans or acted as intermediaries to facilitate the diversion. The findings confirmed the existence of a fraudulent scheme led by Ambani and administered by RHFL's key personnel. These funds, presented as loans to financially unstable entities closely linked to RHFL's promoters, were not repaid, leading to RHFL's default on its debt obligations.