New Delhi: After the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) fined ICICI, HDFC and Axis banks for flouting customer norms, highlighted by a Cobrapost expose, the latest sting operation by the online magazine exposes how some employees in two foreign banks in India have also been involved in accepting black money and agreeing to launder it.
HSBC and Standard Chartered officers have been caught in a Cobrapost sting operation, offering to launder money. A Cobrapost undercover reporter posing as a politician's aide was offered lockers for black money.
After the earlier Cobrapost sting, the Income Tax Department had issued notices to ICICI, HDFC and Axis banks and the RBI even levied hefty fines on them, but senior bank officials confirm on camera that money laundering is a service offered by all.
HSBC has reacted to the latest sting operation by suspending employees who were seen soliciting black money on camera. "HSBC has a zero-tolerance policy for breaches of law and regulation and the bank takes seriously any reports or allegations of such breaches. As soon as we were informed of the CNN-IBN news report, we launched an immediate investigation including to determine whether any accounts were opened or any transactions similar to those described in the conversations reported by CNN-IBN ever took place. Our employees featured in the news report are on leave pending completion of the investigation. We will take appropriate action, including dismissal, if any employee is found after investigation to have breached the law or
10:00 PM, Jun 18, 2013
Mumbai: Three private banks, caught in the Cobrapost sting operation, have been let off the hook with paltry penalties. The Reserve Bank of India on Monday imposed penalties on Axis, ICICI and HDFC banks after a sting operation by online magazine Cobrapost exposed many loopholes. RBI imposed a penalty of Rs 5 crore on Axis Bank, Rs 4.5 crore on HDFC Bank and Rs 1 crore on ICICI Bank. The...
06:41 PM, Jun 10, 2013
Paris: There was no escape this time for comeback king Tommy Robredo as he lost an all-Spanish French Open quarter-final against ruthless fourth seed David Ferrer 6-2, 6-1, 6-1 on Tuesday. The 31-year-old had recovered two-set deficits in all three of his previous rounds at Roland Garros but Ferrer was rock solid as he thrashed his countryman in one hour 25 minutes. Ferrer, the second-best claycourter in Spain behind defending...
10:46 PM, Jun 04, 2013
Mumbai: While shooting for Annirudh Chautala's film in Rajasthan, Deepak Dobriyal had the retina, cornea and lens of his left eye pierced in a freak accident. Two months later, he is on the way to recovery and says the ruptured eye and the disrupted career are both back on the road to recovery. The accident took place April 11 and Deepak, the scene-stealer from 'Omkara', 'Tanu Weds Manu' and 'Not...
11:07 AM, Jun 03, 2013
Paris: Ranked 470th a year ago, Tommy Robredo reached the quarter-finals of the French Open for the first time since 2009 by rallying from two sets down to stun 11th-seeded Nicolas Almagro 6-7 (5), 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 in an all-Spanish match. Robredo will next face another compatriot, No. 4 David Ferrer. Almagro blew leads of 4-2 in the fourth set and 2-0 in the fifth Sunday. In the final...
10:56 PM, Jun 02, 2013
Ahmedabad: There is "some truth" in Cobrapost's allegations of wrong doings by banks and RBI has issued notices to their managements, central bank Governor D Subbarao said on Thursday. "We have done study of those banks, investigated them ... We have done a larger study of those banks and we have issued notices to the bank managements and shall take appropriate actions," Subbarao said at a question answer session during...
11:20 PM, May 30, 2013
Mumbai: India's banking system is not as strong as expected. An RBI report shows that over 30 banks have failed to follow or enforce various prescribed rules and guidelines. CNBC-TV18 has accessed the report of the audits instigated by the RBI after the Cobrapost expose, which shows that 30 banks, whether from the Public Sector, the private sector, or Foreign, have not followed the prescribed rules. It doesn't matter whether...
11:54 AM, May 30, 2013
New Delhi: Income Tax department has issued notices to three top private lenders in the country - ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and HDFC Bank - in connection with alleged money laundering charges levelled by online portal Cobrapost. The department has asked these banks to produce documents for verification as part of its tax evasion probe. The notices have been issued under section 131 of the I-T Act (power regarding discovery,...
09:59 PM, May 28, 2013
New Delhi: More than 600 CRPF personnel, including CoBRA commandos, have been rushed to sanitise and take control of the Naxal attack site in Chhattisgarh where over a dozen people, including senior Congress leader Mahendra Karma, were killed on Saturday. The Centre has mobilised the CRPF personnel to not only take control of the area but also launch search and rescue operations as it is suspected that some people may...
02:26 AM, May 26, 2013
New Delhi: Over 48 hours since the Bijapur encounter in Chhatisgarh, government sources now concedes that those killed could have been innocent villagers. One CRPF Cobra jawan and seven villagers, including three children, were killed in the encounter at Ehadsameta village of Bijapur district in Chhattisgarh late Friday night. CRPF and state police involved in the operation had initially claimed that the encounter was genuine but now sources in the...
08:06 AM, May 21, 2013
Over 48 hours since the Bijapur encounter, the government has conceded that those killed were innocent villagers, not Naxals. One COBRA personnel and seven villagers were killed in an encounter at Ehadsameta village of Bijapur district in Chhattisgarh late Friday night. CRPF and state police involved in the operation had initially claimed that the encounter was genuine. ...
12:57 AM, May 21, 2013
Raipur: The Chhattisgarh government on Sunday ordered a judicial inquiry into Friday night's encounter between security forces and suspected naxals near Edasmeta village in Bijapur district, in which eight villagers were killed. The locals alleged today that the encounter was fake. A commission headed by Justice VK Agrawal, which is already probing the encounter with Maoists at Sarkeguda in Bijpaur district on June 28-29, 2012, will conduct inquiry into this...
10:44 PM, May 19, 2013
New Delhi: In yet another incident of civilian causalities during police action; eight villagers, including three children, were killed in an alleged encounter between security forces and the ultras in Naxal-affected Bijapur district in southern Chhattisagrh. Police claim they don't have any information that the dead are innocent civilians and that they will investigate the matter. Earlier they had said that Naxals are among those killed in the gun battle....
04:31 PM, May 19, 2013
Mumbai: Amid allegations of cooperative banks being used as conduits for money laundering, NABARD, which jointly regulates such lenders, has said that it has found no shortcoming pointing towards any such activity. "Every year we do an inspection and we have not found anything like that," National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development's (NABARD) chairman Prakash Bakshi told reporters over the weekend, when asked about the recent controversy over money...
02:22 PM, May 19, 2013
New Delhi: Eight villagers, including 3 children, and a securityman of elite Cobra battalion were killed in an encounter between security forces and the ultras in Naxal-affected Bijapur district in southern Chhattisagrh. Police say suspected Naxals are among those killed in the gunbattle late on Friday. "Eight villagers, including suspected Naxals died, apart from one security personnel, in cross-firing between security forces and Maoists late on Friday night in the...
11:48 AM, May 19, 2013
Raipur: Eight villagers, including suspected Naxals and a securityman of elite COBRA battalion, were killed in a gun battle between security forces and the ultras in Maoist-affected Bijapur district in southern Chhattisgarh on Saturday. "Eight villagers, including suspected Naxals died, apart from one security personnel, in cross-firing between security forces and Maoists late on Friday night in the forest near Edesmeta village (under Gangalur police station)," Additional Director General of...
10:20 PM, May 18, 2013
Jamshedpur: At least two Maoists were killed and three jawans got injured in an encounter between the ultras and the security forces in a forest in Seraikela-Kharswan district in Jharkhand, police said on Tuesday. Earlier police had said one Maoist was killed and two jawans were injured in the encounter on Monday. "At least two Maoists were killed while three jawans suffered injury in the encounter that lasted over one...
02:21 PM, May 14, 2013
Jharkhand: One Maoist was killed and two security men were injured on Monday in an encounter in Jharkhand. Police officials said they received a tip-off that Maoists were about to assemble in the forest whereupon the police, COBRA and CRPF forces rushed to the spot. The Maoists fired on seeing the personnel, triggering a gun fight. The encounter took place in a forest between Kalerango and Chatnibeda villages under naxal-affected...
07:29 AM, May 14, 2013
New Delhi: The Reserve Bank of India is probing the Cobrapost sting operation on alleged money laundering by top banks. The RBI report has revealed major irregularities in top banks. The report shows string of violations on several counts. Sources say the RBI report reveals dummy PANs, unknown NRO IDs, unauthorised gold sale, rampant non-compliance of KYC norms and irregular staff trips. Sources say the RBI probe into ICICI Bank...
01:14 PM, May 13, 2013
