BHOPAL/ DUBAI: Enforcement Directorate has widened their probe into a sprawling bank-fraud and money-laundering network linked to a Bhopal-based trading firm, uncovering a trail of foreign credit failures, shell companies, and high-end Dubai real estate allegedly purchased with illicit funds
A Vast Investigation Reaches Abroad
The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has provisionally attached nine high-value properties in Dubai, valued at ₹51.70 crore, as part of an ongoing inquiry into what officials describe as a complex money-laundering scheme linked to Bhopal-based Advantage Overseas Pvt. Ltd. (AOPL).
The attachment, executed by the agency’s Bhopal zonal office on November 17 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), marks the latest step in a multi-year probe involving AOPL’s directors, guarantors and associated entities. The agency alleges that the company’s financial manoeuvres caused wrongful losses of around ₹1,266.63 crore to the State Bank of India’s Shahpura branch.
According to investigators, the properties attached in Dubai spread across upscale neighbourhoods such as Business Bay, Liwa Heights, Centurion Residence, Dubai Silicon Oasis and the World Trade Centre Residences were acquired using proceeds of crime routed through a network of domestic and international companies.
The Letters of Credit That Failed
A significant part of the financial losses, officials say, stemmed from 12 foreign letters of credit (FLCs) worth approximately US$200 million(₹1769 crores), issued between April and May 2018. The LCs devolved on SBI when AOPL allegedly failed to meet mandatory margin requirements and did not infuse the required funds during rollover.
ED officials state that as AOPL’s deposits depleted and the firm proved unable to honour its commitments, SBI was compelled to make payments to overseas suppliers on its behalf. The bank’s exposure deepened as the company’s liquidity eroded, forcing public-sector funds to shoulder the losses.
Investigators maintain that once the LCs devolved, the payments—initially made by SBI—were layered across a web of related entities. The funds, they allege, were round-tripped through multiple companies before ultimately being deployed to purchase foreign real estate and other high-value assets.
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A Network of Companies and Complex Financial Movements
ED officials say the money trail uncovered over months of inquiry reflects a mosaic of unlawful activities: diversion of bank funds, fabricated documents, circular trading, and illicit transactions routed through domestic and offshore entities.
According to the agency, a core group of companies—controlled directly or indirectly by AOPL’s key managerial personnel—was allegedly used to move funds across borders and conceal the origin of payments. Layering of transactions allowed the proceeds to flow into real-estate purchases in the UAE, which investigators say were made using bank-derived funds.
In August this year, ED searches reportedly unearthed substantial incriminating evidence, including documentation indicating the use of benami companies and suspicious trade transactions designed to obscure financial flows. Officials say this material forms the basis of the attachment orders issued this month.
Transfers, Gifting, and Allegations of Concealment
Among the attached assets are properties that investigators say were strategically transferred through gift deeds executed between 2022 and 2023. According to ED, these properties—originally acquired with illicitly sourced funds—were gifted without monetary consideration to a close family member of AOPL’s primary controlling figure.
Officials argue that the timing and structure of these transfers suggest an effort to distance the owner from the assets and further complicate the tracing of proceeds. The gifting pattern, they contend, formed a critical part of the concealment strategy.
ED states that further inquiry is underway and that additional attachments or charges may follow depending on the outcome of ongoing forensic financial analysis. The agency has indicated that the probe now extends into the activities of several domestic and foreign companies allegedly linked to the movement of funds.
