The shackles are tightening around the steel tycoon Sanjiv Gupta, as his group, GFG, which already has a liquidity problem, is in the midst of an investigation into fraud and money laundering, mainly due to its links with the now bankrupt Greensill company.
The SFO (Serious Fraud Office), the financial prosecutor’s office, has launched an investigation into suspicion of fraud, fraudulent commercial practice and money laundering by the Gupta Family Group (GFG) Alliance and its financial relationship with the Greensill, refers to the announcement issued today, as reported by ΑΠΕ-ΜΠΕ.
The SFO did not provide any further details, “as investigations are ongoing.” The GFG group told Agence France-Presse that it would cooperate fully with the investigations.
The Financial Times revealed that Gupta’s group had given Greensill “suspicious” invoices to secure funds. Gupta denies committing fraud, while Greensill has not verified the validity of these invoices, according to the newspaper.
The research focuses mainly on the practice followed by the financial company Greensill, which gave loans to its customers to pay bills that did not yet exist but could (or could not) exist in the future. “It looks a lot like a scam,” Labor MP Angela Eagle said recently.
Lex Greensill, the founder of Greensill, referred to his close ties to Sanjiv Gupta, testifying this week in a House of Commons committee. He even admitted that the steel mogul had been a shareholder in Greensill for a short time.
This case is a new blow to GFG, one of Greensill’s major clients, to whom it owed billions of dollars. Following the collapse of Greensill in March, the group of Indo-British businessman Sanjiv Gupta is desperately seeking resources so as not to be forced to close its subsidiary Liberty Steel.
In a statement today, the group said it was “making progress in financing its businesses”, which are also benefiting from the recent rise in steel and aluminum prices.
A source close to the case said last week that Liberty Steel in the UK is close to a 200 200m loan with investment firm White Oak. This money would give the group a breath of fresh air, which would avoid bankruptcy for the time being. The British government has refused to subsidize him, citing reasons of “opacity” on his part.
In early April, Sanjiv Gupta said he “does not expect salvation from anyone” and vowed not to close his steelworks in the UK as long as he remained head of the group.
GFG has around 5,000 employees in the UK and 35,000 worldwide.
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