ED Summons Reliance Chairman Anil Ambani in 10,000 Crore+ Loan-Fraud and Money Laundering Probe
Officials state that Yes Bank promoters allegedly received funds in their associated concerns just before the loans were sanctioned to Reliance, raising suspicions of quid pro quo .
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has summoned Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani for questioning in connection with an ongoing investigation into allegations of loan fraud and money laundering involving an eye-watering amount exceeding ₹10,000 crore. The investigation, which pertains to Ambani’s Reliance group of companies, was initiated following an extensive three-day...
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has summoned Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani for questioning in connection with an ongoing investigation into allegations of loan fraud and money laundering involving an eye-watering amount exceeding ₹10,000 crore.
The investigation, which pertains to Ambani’s Reliance group of companies, was initiated following an extensive three-day search operation conducted at over 35 locations in Mumbai and Delhi - during which authorities unearthed a trail linking 50 companies and 25 individuals associated with Ambani’s business conglomerate.
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According to ED sources, the ongoing investigation stems from two FIRs registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) alleging illegal diversion of loans of ₹3,000 crore disbursed by Yes Bank to Reliance ADAG companies between 2017 and 2019.
Officials state that Yes Bank promoters allegedly received funds in their associated concerns just before the loans were sanctioned to Reliance, raising suspicions of a quid pro quo arrangement and potential bribery claims linked to the loan-lending process.
The ED has also flagged systemic irregularities across multiple transactions, including the issuance of loans without adequate financial checks, use of shell entities, existence of common directors across borrowing firms and loan evergreening where new loans were granted to defaulters to repay earlier ones.
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The agency has stated that a large portion of the diverted loan funds allegedly found their way to entities with weak financials and were routed through undisclosed foreign bankaccounts and assets.
Several regulatory and financial watchdogs including the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), National Housing Bank (NHB), National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA) and the Bank of Baroda have all submitted reports to ED flagging serious concerns regarding the conduct of Reliance group of Companies.
Notably, SEBI’s report on Reliance Home Finance Limited (RHFL) stated that their corporate loan book nearly doubled from ₹3,742 crore to ₹8,670 crore in just one year.
In response to the ED action, Reliance Power and Reliance Infrastructure issued filings on July 26, 2025 stating that the raids had no impact on their business operations or stakeholders.
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They further clarified that Anil Ambani is not on the board of either company and that both entities have no financial or business linkages with Reliance Communications Limited or Reliance Home Finance Limited, stating that the ED investigation relates to decade-old transactions.
This latest development comes in the wake of a July 22 Lok Sabha disclosure in which the Finance Ministry confirmed that the State Bank of India had officially classified Reliance Communications (RCOM) and its promoter as “fraud” accounts, citing an outstanding exposure of over ₹2,227 crore.
The State Bank of India had made such classification on the basis of updated fraud detection guidelines issued by the Reserve Bank of India, which is also being followed up with a formal complaint to the CBI.
Along with the money laundering probe, ED is also looking into ₹2,850 crore of investments made by Reliance Mutual Fund in high-risk AT-1 bonds and the existence of a mysterious entity called ‘C Company’ which may have served as a conduit in related-party transactions.
ED is expected to record Anil Ambani’s statement under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) on August 5, 2025 at the Delhi headquarters of the Agency.
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