Sebi issued a notice to Rana Kapoor, the former MD and CEO of Yes Bank, on Tuesday, demanding a payment of Rs 2.22 crore in a case involving the misselling of the bank's AT-1 bonds to retail investors. The notice warned of potential arrest and attachment of assets and bank accounts if Kapoor fails to make the payment within 15 days.
The alleged misselling of Yes Bank's AT-1 bonds took place between 2016 and 2019. It was claimed that the bank and certain officials did not properly inform investors about the risks associated with these bonds when they were sold in the secondary market.
The recent demand notice was issued after Kapoor had previously failed to pay a penalty imposed by Sebi in September 2022, amounting to Rs 2 crore for his involvement in the misselling case. Sebi's investigation revealed that Kapoor oversaw the entire operation of selling AT-1 bonds, putting pressure on officials to increase sales through regular updates and further instructions.
Sebi held Kapoor responsible for acts of misrepresentation, suppression of material facts, manipulation, and misselling of AT-1 bonds to individual investors. He was also accused of pressuring the private wealth management team to devise a deceptive scheme to unload the AT-1 bonds onto unsuspecting customers of Yes Bank.
If Kapoor does not comply with the payment within the stipulated time, Sebi will proceed to recover the amount by attaching and selling his movable and immovable property. Additionally, his bank accounts may be subject to attachment, and he may face arrest as well.