ED Summons Anil Ambani Over Alleged ₹17,000 Crore Loan Fraud Investigation
ED Investigates Anil Ambani in Loan Fraud Case
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has summoned Anil Ambani, the Chairman and Managing Director of the Reliance Group, for questioning related to an ongoing investigation into an alleged ₹17,000 crore loan fraud. Last week, the financial crime investigation agency conducted raids at the premises of 50 companies and 25 individuals, including senior officials from the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group. The loans under scrutiny were provided by Yes Bank to RHFL and RCF.
On August 5, the ED called Anil Ambani to appear in connection with the money laundering case linked to the alleged loan fraud involving his group companies. Official sources revealed this information on Friday (August 1, 2025). Due to the case being registered in Delhi, Ambani, aged 66, has been summoned to the ED headquarters in the capital. The agency plans to record his statement under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act upon his arrival.
Raids and Allegations of Financial Irregularities
Several officials from his group of companies have also been asked to appear in the coming days. The federal agency had conducted raids at 35 locations of 50 companies, including those associated with Anil Ambani, over the course of three days starting July 24. This operation was initiated due to alleged financial irregularities and the misuse of over ₹17,000 crore in collective loans by various companies within the Reliance Group, including Reliance Infrastructure (R Infra).
According to a report from SEBI, the agency discovered that R Infra transferred funds to Reliance Group companies as inter-corporate deposits (ICD) through a company named CLE. It is alleged that R Infra did not disclose CLE as a related party to avoid obtaining approval from shareholders and the audit panel.
Reliance Group Responds to Allegations
A spokesperson for the Reliance Group stated that the allegation of transferring ₹10,000 crore to an unknown party is a decade-old issue. The spokesperson emphasized that the company had reported its outstanding dues to be around ₹6,500 crore. The statement noted that Reliance Infrastructure publicly disclosed this matter on February 9, 2025.
The spokesperson added, 'Through mandatory arbitration proceedings conducted by a retired Supreme Court judge and filed in the Bombay High Court, Reliance Infra has reached a settlement for the recovery of its total outstanding dues of ₹6,500 crore.' The company also mentioned that Anil Ambani has not been on the board of R Infra for over three years (since March 2022). The ED is also investigating allegations that Ambani's group companies misused approximately ₹3,000 crore in illegal loans from Yes Bank between 2017 and 2019.
Sources indicate that the ED has found that just before the loans were issued, the promoters of Yes Bank received funds in their establishments. The agency is investigating bribery and collusion in this matter. Additionally, the ED is looking into serious violations related to the approvals for loans given to these companies by Yes Bank, including allegations of backdated loan approval memos and breaches of the bank's lending policy without proper scrutiny or loan analysis.