The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday carried out simultaneous raids in connection with a money laundering investigation into an alleged Rs 3,000 crore bank loan fraud involving companies of the Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group and Yes Bank.
The searches are being conducted at more than 35 locations across Mumbai and Delhi, targeting around 50 companies and 25 individuals under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), according to a PTI report citing sources.
The agency is probing allegations that loans worth Rs 3,000 crore were illegally diverted from Yes Bank between 2017 and 2019. ED sources in the report also revealed that shortly before these loans were disbursed, funds were allegedly transferred to entities linked to Yes Bank promoters, raising suspicions of a bribery-laced nexus behind the approvals.
The investigation is focused on what the ED describes as "gross violations" in the bank’s loan sanctioning process for companies in the Reliance Anil Ambani Group. These alleged irregularities include the use of back-dated Credit Approval Memorandums (CAMs), investments made without proper due diligence, and violations of Yes Bank’s internal credit policies.
The money laundering case is based on at least two FIRs filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), along with inputs from the National Housing Bank, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA), and Bank of Baroda, the sources added in the report.
Yes Bank Loans
At the center of the investigation is a series of loans amounting to Rs 3,000 crore taken from Yes Bank between 2017 and 2019. ED officials claim that before these loans were officially disbursed to the Reliance Group, large sums were transferred to entities allegedly associated with the bank’s promoters. The agency is also examining a suspected bribery angle involving former Yes Bank executives.
The investigation gained further momentum after authorities shared findings related to Reliance Home Finance Ltd (RHFL). One of the most alarming red flags was a sudden and sharp rise in corporate loan disbursements, jumping from Rs 3,742.60 crore in the financial year 2017–18 to Rs 8,670.80 crore in 2018–19.
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SBI Declaration
In a related development, the State Bank of India (SBI) recently declared Reliance Communications (RCom) and its promoter Anil Ambani as ‘fraud’ under RBI’s guidelines on fraud risk management. The declaration, made on June 13, 2025, was reported to the Reserve Bank of India on June 24, and the bank is preparing to file a formal complaint with the CBI.