ED Attaches Provisional Assets of Raj Kundra, including bitcoin worth ₹97.79 Cr in the Crypto Ponzi Scam

The ED has provisionally attached assets worth ₹97.79 crore of Raj Kundra, involving a flat, bungalow and shares, suspecting him of being a beneficiary in an alleged ₹6,600 crore Bitcoin ponzi scam case.

In the early morning hours of Thursday, the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) announced that it has provisionally attached assets worth ₹97.79 crore belonging to the businessman Raj Kundra in the money laundering case pertaining to the ₹6,600 crore Bitcoin-based ponzi scam carried out by the Singapore firm, Variable Tech Private Limited.

The ED sources say that Kundra, the spouse of the Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty, is suspected of being a beneficiary of the proceeds of crime in this case. The connected properties include the apartment in Juhu, where Shilpa Shetty currently lives, a house in Pune, and Raj Kundra's equity shares.

The ED claims that the Variable Tech Company had managed to amass approximately 80,000 bitcoins from investors in India using the promise of high returns, but instead, the funds equal to ₹6,606 crore were transferred through nine companies to buy properties in other countries. The agency explained that the regulators revealed that the promoters defrauded investors and hid the bitcoins that were obtained illegally in dark wallets on the internet.

Reportedly, Raj Kundra was given 285 bitcoins by the alleged mastermind Amit Bhardwaj to create a Bitcoin mining farm in Ukraine. Nevertheless, with the deal not happening, Kundra still remains the owner of those 285 bitcoins, and they stand at a value of more than ₹150 crore at this moment.

The main person responsible for the crime, Ajay Bhardwaj and Mahendra Bhardwaj, are still on the run. It was in 2018 that the ED took up the case of the Ponzi scheme on a running complaint filed by the Maharashtra and Delhi police against Variable Tech and its agents.

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In January, the agency arrested Delhi businessman Nikhil Mahajan for his alleged part in promoting the scam through his seminars in Dubai to attract investors. By some accounts, he received around 40 bitcoins.

Bitcoins in India are not recognized as legal tender. If we calculate the current rate, one bitcoin will cost around ₹51 lakh.