Vivo Mobiles India Raided – US$ 58.7 Million Seized

Vivo Mobiles India Raided – US$ 58.7 Million Seized. Indian anti-money laundering authorities announced on Thursday that they had confiscated gold bars, cash, and bank accounts totaling 4.65 billion rupees ($59 million) from the local branch of Chinese smartphone manufacturer Vivo Mobile Communications Co. and its affiliated companies.

According to a statement from the Enforcement Directorate, Vivo sent 624.76 billion rupees, or around half of its domestic sales, outside of India, primarily to China. In order to avoid paying taxes in India, these transfers were sent in order to disclose significant losses in Indian-incorporated businesses.

Vivo Mobiles India Raided-Enforcement Directorate Raids

Earlier this week, hundreds of Vivo offices were raided by Indian police. The country’s financial crime watchdog, the Enforcement Directorate, announced on Thursday that it had confiscated 119 bank accounts connected to Vivo India, totaling US$58.7 million. The probe came after similar actions were taken against Huawei Technologies Co. and Xiaomi, two major manufacturers of Chinese smartphones.

In December of last year, the agency filed an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) against Grand Prospect International Communication Pvt Ltd (GPICPL), a Vivo-affiliated firm, as well as its directors, shareholders, and a few other professionals.T

the Ministry of Corporate Affairs filed a police report saying that, during the company’s December 2014 establishment, GPICPL and its shareholders used “falsified” addresses and “forged” identification documents.

According to the ED, “The addresses indicated by the directors of GPICPL did not belong to them, but it was a government building and the home of a prominent bureaucrat, therefore the inquiry confirmed that the charges were true.”

Indian Vigilance on Chinese Companies

According to a previous report from Bloomberg News, New Delhi is looking into the local subsidiaries of ZTE Corp. and Vivo for potential financial irregularities. This comes after the two nuclear-armed neighbors clashed in the Himalayan border region in 2020. Since then, New Delhi has increased its scrutiny of Chinese-origin companies.

Xiaomi – Top Selling Mobile phone in India also Targetted

With a 23% market share in the first quarter of this year, Xiaomi surpassed South Korean smartphone juggernaut Samsung Electronics, which had a 16% share, as the most popular brand of smartphones in India.

Two months ago, India took more than $700 million from Xiaomi, which was also charged with transferring money unlawfully outside the nation. “All our operations are firmly in compliance with local laws and regulations,” Xiaomi India stated at the time.

According to data gathered by Counterpoint, Chinese phone manufacturers predominate the Indian market, with Xiaomi being the best-selling brand. According to the company, Vivo is also one of the top five brands.

Chinese Embassy Reaction

After the local offices of Chinese smartphone manufacturer Vivo were raided by authorities in an investigation into alleged money laundering, the Chinese embassy in India spoke out against New Delhi’s “frequent investigations” into Chinese companies and issued a warning about the implications for India’s business environment and investor confidence.

The investigations have disrupted normal business activities and will “impede the improvement of the business environment in India” by hurting the “confidence and willingness” of foreign entities seeking to do business in the country, Counselor Wang Xiaojian, a spokesman for the local Chinese embassy, said in a statement.

Two weeks after the fighting ended in June of that year, New Delhi targeted Chinese tech companies, including Tencent Holdings, Baidu, and Alibaba Group Holding, which owns the South China Morning Post. On the basis of national security, it also outlawed 59 mobile applications, including TikTok.

More than 200 Chinese apps have already been outlawed by the government, undermining IT companies’ plans in what is regarded as the next major growth market.

Sources : Business Standard, penisulaqatar, CNN, SCMP China

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