India’s hedge funds threatened by higher taxes
So much of India’s private wealth is trapped in gold that any more will be a colossal social waste ... - Continue reading
Category: SEBI
Rs 3,400-crore tax evasion’: I-T probing over 21,000 entities
The probe follows an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on 14,720 entities in a case related to alleged trading irregularities in that segment. THE INCOME-TAX (I-T) Department is probing at least 21,900 entities that have traded through 193 brokers and allegedly evaded taxes of about… – Continue reading
Tax evasion: I-T deptment, SEBI begin crackdown on penny stock firms
The I-T department and SEBI are working on a two-pronged approach that involves action against tax evaders and tightening of norms for scrips prone to price manipulation Tightening the noose around companies invloved in tax evasion, the Income Tax department and market regulator SEBI have launched a crackdown on penny… – Continue reading
Tax evasion through stocks: Sebi revokes ban on 114 entities
Markets regulator Sebi has revoked trading ban imposed on 114 entities, which had come under the scanner for alleged manipulation and misuse of stock market platform for tax evasion, saying it did not find any adverse evidence against them. This comes after Sebi, earlier this month, had revoked ban on… – Continue reading
Cairn moves international arbitration panel against dividend freeze
Cairn Energy has petitioned an international arbitration tribunal against billionaire Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta Ltd withholding its dividend for last three years New Delhi: UK’s Cairn Energy plc has petitioned an international arbitration tribunal against billionaire Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta Ltd withholding its dividend for last three years despite tax authorities saying… – Continue reading
U.S. tax hunt overseas causes global headaches
There is little that can be done about FATCA and the change has to come from within the U.S. Death and taxes, life’s two certainties according to Keynes, sometimes have a causal relationship. One dies and some taxes are often associated with that event. Alternatively, one encounters so much regulation… – Continue reading
Working group to examine issues on Mauritius DTAA
NEW DELHI: The government has constituted a working group to examine the “consequential issues” arising out of the changes in India’s tax treaty with Mauritius.The India-Mauritius Double Taxation Avoidance Convention was amended last month to introduce a levy to prevent investors from using the island nation as a shelter to… – Continue reading
The IBFM tax regime: A non-starter
Despite best intentions of the government, there have been little or no takers for India-based fund managers In 2015, the Indian government took a commendable step by introducing a new provision in the Income-tax Act, 1961 (i.e. section 9A), to promote India as a fund manager jurisdiction, and to encourage… – Continue reading
Sebi bars 246 entities in tax evasion case
In a major clampdown on tax evasion through stock markets, regulator Sebi today barred 246 entities from capital markets after they were found to have indulged in a web of “make-believe” trades to artificially inflate share prices and entrap gullible investors. The regulator said that these entities booked a profit… – Continue reading
SEBI busts over Rs.15,000 cr worth tax evasion
In a major clampdown, regulator SEBI has debarred over 1,000 entities from the capital markets after they were found to be misusing stock exchange platforms for tax evasion to the tune of more than Rs 15,000 crore. SEBI has also suspended trading in shares of as many as 167 companies,… – Continue reading
Budget 2016: 9% tax rate regime for India’s first International Financial Centre
The pet project of Prime Minister Narendra Modi – the International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) – housed in the Gujarat International Finance Tec City – has received a boost in the Union Budget 2016/17. The long pending tax issue has been decided with 9 per cent minimum alternate tax (MAT),… – Continue reading
Sebi bars 22 brokers for ‘tax evasion’ trades of Rs 8,100 crore
NEW DELHI: Continuing its crackdown on misuse of stock exchange system for tax evasion, regulator Sebi on Wednesday barred 22 brokers from securities market for executing ‘reversal trades’ worth over Rs 8,100 crore to generate fictional profits or losses. However, these trading members would be allowed to function as stock… – Continue reading
SEBI UPS VIGIL ON TAX EVASION ATTEMPTS AS FISCAL-END NEAR
NEW DELHI: As the current fiscal nears its end, Sebi has stepped up its surveillance to check tax evasion attempts through ‘arbitrage’ and bogus losses using stocks and mutual fund investments. Towards the end of every financial year, the manipulators tend to devise new ways of tax evasion, including incurring… – Continue reading
Start-up investment in India to get capital gains tax exemption
PM Narendra Modi also announces a Rs.10,000 crore fund to provide support to innovation driven enterprises New Delhi:In an effort to give a fillip to the start-up ecosystem in the country, the government on Saturday announced its intention to exempt capital gains tax on investments in start-ups and a Rs.10,000… – Continue reading
India: Swiss Apex Court Denies Treaty Benefits For Dividend On Securities Acquired For Hedging Derivative Contracts
Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland denies treaty benefits in case of dividend paid on shares acquired for hedging derivative contracts. Court stated that due to the fully hedged nature of ownership, there was economic nexus and interdependency between two independent transactions and therefore, the “intermediary” bank did not have beneficial… – Continue reading
380 market members violated anti-money laundering rules in FY15
MUMBAI: As many as 380 market entities, most of them stock brokers, faced action for failing to prevent possible money laundering and terror financing activities during the last fiscal. Discrepancies related to Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Financing of Terrorism (AML and CFT) regulations were observed against brokers and depository participants… – Continue reading
Shriram AMC gets Sebi nod for offshore fund management
Shriram Asset Management Company gets Sebi nod for offshore fund management Shriram Asset Management Company Ltd today said it has got market regulator Sebi’s approval to manage offshore funds. “The company has recently got the go-ahead from Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to undertake ‘offshore fund management’,” Shriram… – Continue reading
Better global rankings underline India’s potential
The World Bank has placed India twelve notches higher than last year in its Ease of Doing Business rankings for 2016. This comes close on the heels of the country’s sixteen place leap on the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness index. These rankings underline the impact of the recent spate… – Continue reading
Make note of new disclosure requirements
Towards compliance with tax information sharing laws put in place in recent times, all financial intermediaries are mandated to seek information from account holders. They are also obliged to share information of your account with relevant authorities. SEBI too has issued guidelines on identification of beneficial ownership and mandated all… – Continue reading
DYK: You have to update your KYC details for mutual fund investments
Fund houses and R&T agents have already started alerting investors to furnish Fatca and KYC details Mutual fund (MF) investors have to submit declarations to their fund houses to comply with the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (Fatca), which was passed in the US in 2010 (read more on this… – Continue reading
Sebi bans 15 persons, suspects tax evasion
NEW DELHI: Markets regulator Sebi today barred 15 individuals from securities market on suspected tax evasion and money laundering through stock trading platforms. This is on top of 108 entities already prohibited from the securities in December last year in a case related to Radford Global Limited. These entities misused… – Continue reading
Cayman Islands: Offshore Derivative Instruments; The Cayman Islands And India
Whilst the growth of India as an emerging market for foreign investment is nothing new, we are seeing some new trends in the way in which offshore Cayman vehicles are being used as an avenue for investing in that market – specifically, voluntarily registering master funds as regulated master funds… – Continue reading
Government to ease safe harbour rules to attract PE investors to India
MUMBAI: The government is set to ease a few pre-set conditions for offshore fund managers to allow private equity investors to shift base to India without attracting a tax on capital gains by relaxing safe harbour rules, people familiar with the matter said. The government is likely to allow a… – Continue reading
Beyond the Black Money Bill
No focus on stock markets and other money-laundering machines After all the noisy assertions, only Rs4,147 crore of unaccounted wealth was declared during the special 90-day compliance window of the The Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets (Imposition of Tax) Act, 2015 (Black Money Bill). Of this, just Rs2,488 crore will… – Continue reading
Sebi widens black money probe; offshore arbitrage under lens
NEW DELHI: Widening its probe into suspected tax evasion and laundering of black money through stock markets, regulator Sebi is looking into illicit ‘arbitrage’ through derivatives trading from offshore locations. Also under the scanner are manipulation through ‘client code modifications’ in the past, although there has been a complete clampdown… – Continue reading
Sebi asks market entities to follow I-T Department norms for FATCA
NEW DELHI: To ensure compliance with FATCA — the new US law to check offshore tax evasion — regulator Sebi today asked all market intermediaries to follow reporting requirements prescribed by Income Tax Department in this regard. Under Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), foreign financial institutions that fail to… – Continue reading
Big UK companies halve provisions for disputed tax bills
The amount big companies set aside to cover disputed tax bills has more than halved over the past three years to £1.7bn this year, reports the Financial Times. Even though businesses fear more disputes as tax authorities become increasingly tough, they are showing reluctance to be drawn into conflicts that… – Continue reading
Implementation Of The Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement And Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act
SEBI on August 26, 2015 released a notification on the captioned head. It informed the intermediaries that India has joined The Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement (MCCA). Further on July 09, 2015, the Governments of India and United States of America signed an agreement to improve international tax compliance and to… – Continue reading
SEBI asks market intermediaries to comply with the new income tax rules
MUMBAI: The Securities and Exchange Board of India has asked all market intermediaries to comply with the new income tax rules– Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act(FATCA)–with India becoming a signatory to the multilateral Competent Authority Agreement(MCAA). The global agreement between countries has put an obligation on them to exchange wide… – Continue reading
Black money window: More disclosures likely towards Sept-end
The government expects the number of disclosures about unaccounted overseas wealth under the black money window to go up in the last few weeks of the compliance period, which ends on September 30. “We expect the number of applications under the (black money) compliance window to go up during the… – Continue reading
Ensure compliance with FATCA requirements, says SEBI
NEW DELHI: Regulator SEBI today asked market entities to ensure compliance with changed income tax regulations, with India becoming a signatory to FATCA as well as a global pact to check tax evasion. The latest directive comes close on the heels of the government signing FATCA with the United States… – Continue reading
Sebi steps up black money fight; busts gains through ‘losses’
MUMBAI: As it steps up its crackdown on tax evasion and laundering of black money through stock markets, regulator Sebi has busted an ‘innovative’ scheme wherein HNIs were incurring ‘bogus losses’ to offset tax liabilities. The probe, which has resulted in an interim ban on 59 entities, including HNIs and… – Continue reading
Singapore bankers rattled by Asian moves to chase hidden wealth
Singapore-based wealth managers, already under pressure from a global move towards tax information sharing, face a more immediate threat as Asian countries including Indonesia and India look to chase undeclared money in the low-tax city state. A global crackdown on tax evasion launched during the 2008 financial crisis has already… – Continue reading
BSE takes measures to plug tax evasion, money launderingq
The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) is putting in place a series of measures to prevent use of its exchange platform by various unscrupulous entities to evade taxes and launder money. These measures include putting additional circuit filters on stocks that are susceptible for price manipulation and reducing the number of… – Continue reading
Top FPIs raise concerns with Sebi over Mauritius Treaty, GAAR and participatory notes
MUMBAI: Large foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have voiced concerns before Indian capital market regulator Sebi about the fate of the Mauritius treaty which the government is renegotiating with the tax haven. Officials of more than 20 offshore asset managers, belonging to top banking groups and fund houses, met Sebi chairman… – Continue reading
Wealthy investors under Sebi scanner
High net worth individuals seen using illiquid stocks in options segment to evade taxes, manipulate markets; order likely soon The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) is likely to act against several wealthy investors, for alleged manipulation of the stock exchange route for evading taxes. Sources said the market… – Continue reading
Offshore bank units come under Sebi lens for share market manipulations
Sebi has started cracking down on offshore units of major global banks for their suspected role in manipulation of share prices in the Indian stock market. Capital markets regulator Sebi has started cracking down on offshore units of major global banks for their suspected role in manipulation of share prices… – Continue reading
Sebi probing UBS on round-tripping : Companies in mining, liquor, and real estate also being investigated, it appears, with ED asked to have a look
In the midst of the Special Investigative Team (SIT) on undisclosed money flagging concern on participatory notes (p-notes), the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) says it is probing a case of alleged round tripping. The term refers to transactions between companies that bolster their revenue but, in the… – Continue reading
Mauritius & P-notes: Any proposed change in rules may spook Dalal Street
Just as every new government fiddles around with high school history text books, it also dabbles in Mauritius and P-notes. Both actions have a sharp, short-lived impact, leaving behind a trail of conspiracy theories. Mauritius and P-notes are ghosts that New Delhi and regulators could never quite exercise. They unfailingly… – Continue reading
Indian cabinet nod to foreign investment in AIFs
The Indian cabinet on Wednesday approved foreign investment in Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs), a category of pooled-in investment vehicles for real estate, private equity and hedge funds, reports Bloomberg. The move comes after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley promised in his Budget speech that rules will be liberalised to channel more… – Continue reading
P-note crackdown may weigh heavy on markets : This route accounts for Rs 2.75 lakh crore of FPI holdings
The Supreme Court-appointed special investigative team’s (SIT’s) recommendation of stricter norms for participatory notes (P-notes), to check the flow of unaccounted money, is likely to be viewed negatively by the market. The SIT had last week suggested the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) put in place regulations to… – Continue reading
Cricket betting, donations on hit-list of black money panel
The Supreme Court-appointed special investigation team on black money has called for clamping down on betting in cricket and stringent checks to prevent rampant use of unaccounted funds in educational institutions by way of donations and capitation fee. The panel has also called for a cash holding limit of Rs… – Continue reading
Sebi busts billion-dollar ‘tax evasion shops’ in stock market
MUMBAI: Suspecting tax evasion of at least Rs 5,000-6,000 crore, regulator Sebi has clamped down on a large number of organised syndicates who had set up ‘shops’ to convert black money into legitimate-looking funds through the stock market platform. While more than 900 entities have been banned from capital markets… – Continue reading
I-T department launches investigation against 90 companies for money laundering
The tax department has launched an investigation against 90 companies for possible evasion, money laundering and for converting black money into “white” through a series of transactions in little-known shares, commonly called penny stocks. Sources said this is a massive scam which the department is probing and is the latest… – Continue reading
Modi government may soon clarify tax rules for permanent establishment
MUMBAI: The government may soon clarify tax rules making it easier for fund managers operating large India-dedicated funds to set up an office in the country, four months after finance minister Arun Jaitley announced in the budget about the government’s intentions to do so. The finance ministry and the central… – Continue reading
Is Sebi’s tax sleuthing becoming a distraction?
As far as Sebi’s role goes, it might spread itself too thin if it chases every whiff of a tax scandal Lately, there have been a string of orders by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) alleging misuse of stock exchanges for tax evasion. The market regulator’s investigations… – Continue reading
Sebi enhances vigil for money laundering through stock market
To check laundering of black money through stock market platform, regulator has enhanced its vigil for the entities engaged in such illicit trades and has suggested further probe by other agencies in this regard. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has found hundreds of entities to have devised… – Continue reading
India, US to sign cross border tax compliance deal: FM
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said India will sign an agreement with the US under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) that would facilitate automatic transmission of information and would help counter the scourge of black money. Wrapping up his nine-day US visit, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said India will… – Continue reading
Sebi backs foreign portfolio investors, raises concern over impact of MAT
MUMBAI: India’s capital markets regulator has stepped in to back foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) as they oppose the minimum alternate tax (MAT). In a recent letter to the finance ministry, Sebi has voiced its concerns over the possible impact of MAT on foreign funds — the largest group of investors… – Continue reading
Sebi cracks down on Rs 420-cr tax fraud, bars 178 entities
After finding them guilty of manipulation in the stock market for making illegal gains, Sebi has restrained the 178 entities, including Pine Animation, from accessing the securities market. In a fresh clampdown on misuse of stock market platform for suspected money laundering activity, Sebi today banned Pine Animation and 177… – Continue reading
