Business
ED Attaches Assets Valued At Rs 80 Crore In Ramprastha Promoters Fraud Case
GURUGRAM: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached movable and immovable assets valued at Rs 80.03 crore belonging to entities linked to M/s Ramprastha Promoters and Developers Private Limited (RPDPL) in a major money laundering probe, ED officials said on Friday. The attachment, executed on December 17 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, targets properties of Vatika Group, Unitech Group, and other firms where funds from defrauded homebuyers were allegedly diverted.
The case stems from multiple FIRs filed by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Delhi Police and the Haryana Police, accusing RPDPL and its promoters of cheating thousands of homebuyers by failing to deliver promised flats and plots even after delays of 10-14 years.
The ED investigations revealed that between 2008 and 2011, RPDPL launched projects including Edge Towers, Skyz, Rise, and the plotted colony Ramprastha City in Gurugram’s Sectors 37D, 92, 93, and 95, ED officials added.
The company promised possession within three to four years but collected around Rs 1,100 crore from more than 2,600 homebuyers. Instead of utilising these funds for project completion, the money was siphoned off to group and non-group companies through loans, advances, and land deals, the ED probe said.
In July 2025, ED arrested RPDPL Directors Arvind Walia and Sandeep Yadav — majority shareholders — under the PMLA. Both remain in judicial custody, ED officials said.
Prior actions include searches, seizures, and two provisional attachment orders, freezing assets worth nearly Rs 786 crore linked to RPDPL, its associates, and directors’ relatives.
With the latest attachment, the total value of seized or attached assets in the case has risen to about Rs 866 crore. The ED’s Gurugram Zonal Office continues the investigation, signalling intensified scrutiny on real estate firms accused of diverting buyer funds.
This development highlights growing regulatory action against delayed housing projects in the National Capital Region (NCR), where thousands of buyers have been left in limbo for years.
Consumer rights advocates have welcomed the move, hoping it leads to faster resolution and refunds for affected families.
New Delhi: Japan’s Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) will acquire a 20 per cent in non-bank finance company Shriram Finance (SFL) for $4.4 billion (Rs 39,618 crore), in what is the largest foreign direct investment in the country’s financial services space. MUFG will pick up the minority stake through preferential equity shares, Shriram Finance said in a statement.The Indian financial services outfit will issue 47.1 crore shares at Rs 840.9 each to MUFG Bank through a preferential allotment, it said in a stock exchange filing. MUFG will be able to nominate two directors on the board of Shriram Finance (SFL). The investor will also have a pre-emptive right to subscribe to pro rata shareholding. “These rights shall fall away if the shareholding of the investor in the company falls below 10 per cent on a fully diluted basis,” a press release said. In its edition on Wednesday, TOI had reported about the proposed transaction. “This collaboration combines SFL’s established domestic franchise and extensive distribution network with MUFG Banks’ global expertise and financial strength. The fund infusion will significantly enhance SFL’s capital adequacy, strengthen its balance sheet, and provide long-term growth capital. It will improve access to low-cost liabilities and potentially strengthen SFL’s credit ratings while aligning governance and operational practices with global best standards,” the NBFC said in a statement.
Stock prices in London closed mostly higher on Friday, in light of lower-than-expected US inflation the day before.
The US consumer price index rose by 2.7% in November from a year before, slowing from 3.0% annual inflation in September. Market consensus cited by FXStreet had expected inflation to increase to 3.1% in November.
“The knife-edge nature of yesterday’s rate decision by the Bank of England is keeping UK stocks in check and stalled the FTSE 100’s push towards the 10,000 mark,” said AJ Bell’s Danni Hewson. “Investors have responded to the reality that we could be approaching the end of the current rate-cutting cycle.”
She continued: “Across the Atlantic, the sharply lower-than-anticipated CPI reading in the US suggests the Federal Reserve might have more scope for rate cuts next year.”
The FTSE 100 index closed up 59.65 points, 0.6%, at 9,897.42. The FTSE 250 ended down 12.88 points, 0.1%, at 22,312.71, and the AIM All-Share closed up 1.03 points, 0.1%, at 757.39.
On the FTSE 100, Anglo American edged up 0.4% after reporting that it was striving to wrap up the sale of its nickel business and that it had restarted efforts to dispose of its remaining coal operation.
The London-based diversified miner previously suffered a setback, after Peabody Energy abruptly ended its bid to acquire Anglo American’s steelmaking coal assets in Australia.
Anglo American said on Friday it has reinitiated a formal process to sell the remaining steelmaking coal business.
The miner also said it is working to finalise the last regulatory approval with the European Commission required to complete the transaction, first announced in February this year.
Carnival, on the FTSE 250, jumped 17%.
The Florida-based cruise operator’s pre-tax profit jumped 45% to a “record” 2.77 billion dollars in the financial year ended November 30, from 1.92 billion dollars a year ago. Revenue climbed 6.4% to 26.62 billion dollars, also a record, from 25.02 billion dollars, with passenger ticket revenue growing 5.8% to 17.42 billion dollars.
Carnival also announced the reinstatement of dividends, declaring a quarterly payout of 15 US cents.
For the full year 2026, the company expects adjusted net income to grow by 12%.
In small caps, Seraphim Space rose 8.8%.
The space technology-focused investor’s largest holding, ICEYE, has won a 1.7 billion euro deal through a joint venture with arms firm Rheinmetall AG. The JV will provide the German armed forces with radar services.
On AIM, Revel Collective plunged 74%.
The bar and pub company said that “a number of credible parties” were in talks with the firm to potentially acquire the businesses it operates, but it warned that any deal is unlikely to return any value to shareholders.
Caledonia Mining rose 11%.
The Zimbabwe-focused gold miner has “welcomed” revised provisions announced by the Zimbabwean government on the gold mining sector.
A proposal to up a royalty rate to 10% from 5% will now only apply if the bullion price tops 5,000 dollars an ounce, and not 2,500 dollars. Also, a proposed tax change on capital expenditure treatment has been withdrawn.
Caledonia said that so long as the gold price remains below 5,000, dollars there will be no change to its financial outlook.
In European equities on Friday, the CAC 40 in Paris closed up 0.3%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt ended up 0.3%.
The pound was quoted at 1.3373 dollars at the time of the London equities close on Friday, lower compared with 1.3387 dollars on Thursday. The euro stood at 1.1715 dollars, lower against 1.1730 dollars. Against the yen, the dollar was trading higher at 157.46 yen compared with 155.46 yen.
Stocks in New York were higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.6%, the S&P 500 index up 0.7%, and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.8%.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.14%, widening from 4.11%. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was quoted at 4.82%, widening from 4.79%.
Brent oil was quoted at 60.16 dollars a barrel at the time of the London equities close on Friday, down from 60.23 dollars late Thursday.
Gold was quoted lower at 4,348.80 dollars an ounce, against 4,370.61 dollars on Thursday.
The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Endeavour Mining, up 120.00p at 3,910.00p, Rolls-Royce, up 26.00p at 1,170.00p, DCC, up 103.52p at 5,019.52p, Melrose Industries, up 11.20p at 576.60p, and Spirax, up 120.00p at 6,850.00p.
The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were Barratt Redrow, down 10.16p at 368.64p, Persimmon, down 32.00p at 1,317.00p, JD Sports Fashion, down 2.05p at 84.63p, Berkeley Group, down 70.00p at 3,884.00p, and Marks & Spencer, down 5.50p at 326.60p.
On Monday’s economic calendar, the UK releases current account and gross domestic product data.
On Monday’s UK corporate calendar, no significant events are scheduled.
– Contributed by Alliance News
High home prices, stubbornly high mortgage rates and now less supply are all weighing on potential homebuyers.
Sales of previously owned homes rose just 0.5% in November from October and were 1% lower than November 2024, according to the National Association of Realtors. Sales came in at an annualized rate of 4.13 million units.
This count is based on closings, so it reflects contracts likely signed in September and October, when mortgage rates initially came down slightly but then stayed in a tight range.
Supply, which had been gaining for much of this year, fell in November. There were 1.43 million homes for sale at the end of the month, down 5.9% from October but up 7.5% year over year, according to the association. At the current sales pace, that represents a 4.2-month supply. A six-month supply is considered balanced between buyer and seller.
“Inventory growth is beginning to stall,” Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the Realtors, said in a release. “With distressed property sales at historic lows and housing wealth at an all-time high, homeowners are in no rush to list their properties during the winter months.”
Sellers who were on the market also began to delist their properties at a higher rate than usual. Sellers often take unsold homes off the market heading into winter, but that dynamic was much stronger this year.
And that is keeping pressure on home prices. The median price of a home sold in November was $409,200, an increase of 1.2% from November 2024, and the highest November reading on record. The Realtors use a median measurement, which can skew to what end of the market is selling most. The high end is currently doing much better than the low end. Sales of homes priced in the $100,000 to $250,000 range were down nearly 8% from a year ago, while homes priced at more than $1 million were up 1.4%.
“Wage growth is outpacing home price gains, which improves housing affordability. Still, future affordability could be hampered if housing supply fails to keep pace with demand,” Yun said.
Homes are staying on the market longer, at 36 days compared with 32 days last November. First-time homebuyers made up 30% of sales, unchanged from a year ago, but historically they make up about 40%. Investors stepped back into the market, making up 18% of transactions, up from 13% in November 2024.
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Mitsubishi announces $4.4bn Shriram deal – The Times of India
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