CBI Alleges Quid Pro Quo Between Anil Ambani and Yes Bank Cofounder Rana Kapoor

More details have emerged from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)’s chargesheet against Anil Ambani’s Reliance ADA Group and Yes Bank cofounder Rana Kapoor. In the chargesheet filed last month, the central investigation agency alleged a quid pro quo arrangement between Ambani and companies owned by Kapoor’s family.

According to The Economic Times (ET), the chargesheet also states that Ambani’s son, Jai Anmol Ambani, was involved in some of the decisions related to these transactions.

The chargesheet is based on two criminal cases filed in 2022 against Rana Kapoor, former MD and CEO of Yes Bank, and against Reliance Group’s Reliance Commercial Finance Ltd (RCFL), Reliance Home Finance Ltd (RHFL), and others, following a complaint by Yes Bank’s Chief Vigilance Officer.

The investigation found that Yes Bank invested ₹2,045 crore in debentures and commercial papers of RCFL and ₹2,965 crore in RHFL in 2017, approved by Rana Kapoor, even though CARE Ratings had placed the ADA Group under watch due to weak financials. The funds were later diverted through multiple layers, leading to misuse of public money.

Investigators concluded that Rana Kapoor and Anil Ambani worked together to route Yes Bank’s funds into financially weak ADA Group companies. In return, the ADA Group extended loans and investments at low rates to companies owned by Kapoor’s wife, Bindu Kapoor, and daughters, Radha and Roshni Kapoor.

As part of this exchange, Anil Ambani secured credit facilities from RCFL and RHFL for firms owned by the Kapoor family, causing a loss of ₹2,796.77 crore to Yes Bank while benefiting the ADA Group and Kapoor family entities.

Reliance Nippon Mutual Fund (RNMF), a Reliance Capital subsidiary formed with Japan’s Nippon Life Insurance, also invested ₹1,160 crore in 2017–18 in debentures of Morgan Credits Pvt Ltd, a Kapoor family firm. It further purchased ADA Group debentures worth ₹249.80 crore from Yes Bank and invested ₹1,750 crore in Yes Bank’s unsecured AT1 bonds, which can be converted into equity or written off during financial crises.

The newspaper, citing the chargesheet, claims that Jai Anmol Ambani directly influenced investment decisions at RNMF even as the company was preparing to list on the stock exchanges. The CBI says RNMF had access to large amounts of public money from investors for long-term debt investments.

However, market regulations prohibit mutual funds from investing in group or associate companies through private placements. To bypass this rule, Ambani and Kapoor allegedly devised an arrangement that allowed RNMF’s funds to be diverted into ADA Group companies under the guise of legitimate investments.

The CBI has named Rana Kapoor, Anil Ambani, Bindu Kapoor, Radha Kapoor, Roshni Kapoor, RCFL, RHFL (now Authum Investment & Infrastructure Ltd), RAB Enterprises Pvt Ltd, Imagine Estate Pvt Ltd, Bliss House Pvt Ltd, Imagine Habitat Pvt Ltd, Imagine Residence Pvt Ltd, and Morgan Credits Pvt Ltd in the chargesheet filed in a Mumbai court.