PMLA tribunal quashes attachment of 63 moons assets by ED

PMLA Appellate Tribunal quashes ED attachment of 63 moons asset

Tells co to file indemnity bond

The Prevention of Money Laundering Act Appellate Tribunal on Tuesday released the assets of 63 moons (formerly Financial Technologies) from attachment by the Enforcement Directorate, subject to company filing an indemnity bond within a week.

The company's assets were attached in connection with the Rs 5,600 crore trade settlement default on National Spot Exchange, it's wholly owned subsidiary in 2013.

The Tribunal, on Tuesday, restrained the company from dealing with the released assets till pendency of the trial of the larger issues in the PMLA court.

Based on sound legal advice the company, in a statement, said that the passing of this sort of restraint order and seeking an indemnity bond, particularly when the orders of attachment have been quashed, is beyond the power of the Tribunal under the PMLA. 63 moons will take appropriate legal recourse against this part of the order, it added.

The fresh order from the Tribunal comes even as the Bombay High Court last month quashed the Maharashtra government's attachments of assets worth Rs 2,500 crore of the company under the MPID Act.

The attachment was made by the Mumbai city police's Economic Offences Wing (EoW) on behalf of the government. The Bench of judges Ranjit More and Bharati Dangre observed that NSEL is not a financial establishment within the purview of the Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors (MPID) in Financial Establishments Act (under which attachment was made).

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