Reliance Power Ltd.'s share price plummeted by 5%, hitting the lower circuit limit on Thursday as Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani is set to appear before probe agency Enforcement Directorate for the second time in a few days. Reliance Infrastructure declined 4.93% to a day’s low of Rs 280, while Reliance Power dropped 5% to Rs 45.08 on the BSE. This comes a day after both stocks surged 5% on Wednesday. Despite the bounce, RPower has declined 27.13 per cent this month and RInfra is down 20.67 per cent over the same period. The recent downturn began after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted raids at several locations linked to the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) in Mumbai and New Delhi, as part of a money laundering investigation.
Earlier, Reliance ADAG clarified that the probe is related to transactions involving YES Bank and Reliance Home Finance from over eight years ago, and that the loans in question have already been fully repaid. The group also emphasised that both RPower and RInfra are "nearly debt-free," with net worths of Rs 16,431 crore and Rs 14,883 crore, respectively.
The Anil Ambani case involves complex financial dealings, including alleged quid pro quo arrangements with bankers, suspicious investments routed through shell companies, and forged bank guarantees. Ambani has sought seven days to furnish documents pertaining to the queries posed to him by the ED. Loans to group firms—Reliance Home Finance Ltd, Reliance Commercial Finance Ltd, and Reliance Communications—amounting to around Rs 17,000 crore have reportedly turned into non-performing assets (NPAs), involving nearly 20 lenders. Nearly 20 private and public sector banks had given loans to Anil Ambani's entities over a period of time, which eventually turned into non-performing assets.