PNB detects US $1.77bn fraud in latest India bank case

REUTERS: India’s Punjab National Bank (PNB) has detected fraudulent transactions worth $1.77 billion at a single Mumbai branch in a case that could affect more banks and raise fresh questions about lending procedures at Indian banks mired in soured debt.

PNB, India’s second-largest state-run lender with assets of $120 billion, said in a regulatory filing that the fraud benefited “a few select account holders” and that it has reported the matter to law enforcement agencies.

Indian federal agents last week said they were investigating a billionaire jeweller, Nirav Modi, and others over accusations that they defrauded PNB of $44 million.

An official with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) told Reuters on condition of anonymity that the cases were related.

Modi, who has not commented on the federal case so far, could not be reached for comment on Wednesday. His flagship Firestar Diamond has said it had no involvement in the case.

PNB said that other banks appeared to have lent money to customers abroad based on the fraudulent transactions. It did not name the banks or the customers.

Indian banks, including PNB, have been stung by a surge in bad loans in the past four years, choking lending growth vital to accelerate the pace of expansion in Asia’s third-largest economy. 

The government recently announced a $14 billion bailout for state banks that account for most of the $147 billion of soured loans.

Shares in PNB, the fourth-biggest among all Indian banks by assets, closed almost 10 percent down on Wednesday.