An unpaid ₹515 crore loan to Yes Bank lands beleaguered billionaire Gautam Thapar behind bars

Aug 4, 2021

By: BI India Bureau

Gautham Thappar arrested

Gautam Thapar was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Credit: BCCL

Rana Kapoor

The beleaguered promoter of the Avantha Group is accused of colluding with Rana Kapoor, the former managing director of Yes Bank, who is also under trial.

Credit: BCCL

Central Bureau of Investigation

Thapar is accused of causing a loss of ₹466 crore to Yes Bank, according to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

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Yes bank

The arrest of Thapar pertains to a ₹515 crore loan he got from Yes Bank in 2017, one that was defaulted on in 2019.

Credit: BCCL

Latest arrest

Gautam Thapar’s latest arrest is under a new case of loan default.

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State Bank of India

In an earlier case of ₹2,435 crore default, the State Bank of India (SBI) had lent 12.8 per cent and Yes Bank had 11.75 per cent exposure, Moneylife reported.

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Rana Kapoor

However, it was alleged by the CBI that Rana Kapoor turned a blind eye towards the loans to Thapar’s companies in lieu of kickbacks.

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Amrita Shergill Marg

The kickbacks that Kapoor got include a bungalow on New Delhi’s Amrita Shergill Marg for which Kapoor and his wife paid only ₹378 crore.

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Third-generation businessman

Thapar was third-generation businessman from an illustrious family line whose most famous patriarch Karam Chand Thapar (1900 to 1962).

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Avantha Group of companies

Gautam Thapar played a crucial role in the conglomerate growing into a giant and getting renamed as the Avantha Group of companies.

Credit: Twitter

...contd

Thapar was removed as the Chairman of Avantha Group in August 2019 and a forensic audit, later, reportedly showed siphoning of funds to Thapar’s private companies.

Credit: BCCL

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