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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Fraud turns spotlight on desi millionaires

Fraud turns spotlight on desi millionaires

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published Published on Dec 31, 2010   modified Modified on Dec 31, 2010

Citibank manager Shivraj Puri’s alleged fraud on wealthy clients has swivelled the spotlight on the growing number of high net-worth individuals whose money banks rush to manage for a fee.

The wealth of high net-worth individuals (HNIs) — defined as those who have “investable assets of at least $1 million (around Rs 4.5 crore) — in India is estimated at a staggering $477 billion and is rising each day.

According to the 2010 Asia-Pacific Wealth Report by Capgemini and Merrill Lynch Global Wealth Management, the total number of HNIs in India stood at 1.27 lakh in 2009. More importantly, close to 43,000 such individuals were added to the category this year.

The increase came after a disappointing 2008 when the number of such individuals had dipped to 84,000 from 1.23 lakh in 2007.

According to the report, the HNI population in India and their wealth grew nearly 51 per cent and 53.8 per cent respectively in 2009, more than recouping the losses of 2008, with resurgent stock markets and a booming economy.

The report has forecast that China and India are likely to remain the places where the number of such individuals grows at the highest rates in the world because both economies have been expanding at the fastest rates.

The report brings out some truths, too. It has found that the HNIs in Asia-Pacific largely invested in home-region and domestic markets as they made close to 64 per cent of their net investments in their home market. Their cousins from India went further, investing 82 per cent of their money in local markets.

But bankers have advised such wealthy individuals to be cautious, and have come up with some dos and don’t’s.

Bankers say that if there is a certain element of trust between the customer and the relationship manager of a bank, wealthy individuals must be careful in certain aspects. “He should get all the basic stuff right while issuing a cheque. He should ensure the payee name is mentioned and that the cheque is crossed. Any doubts should be immediately clarified with the superior of the relationship manager,” said a senior official with a private bank.

This is crucial particularly in the context of the fraud in Citibank India as it is believed that the main accused may have got blank cheques from his clients and put the receiver’s name. These funds thus found their way to other accounts opened in the names of his wife and relatives. The money was later invested through few brokerages.

Another official with a foreign bank said HNIs or customers must always be extra cautious when it comes to schemes offering higher returns even if it has been touted that the scheme has been approved by the market regulator. “The best thing to do will be to get a opinion from a third person as well,” the banker added.

Another banker says such customers should read documents submitted for signature carefully and keep track of where their money has been invested.

The Telegraph, 31 December, 2010, http://www.telegraphindia.com/1101231/jsp/nation/story_13374081.jsp


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