No salary to CFO since 2020, ₹17,000 monthly pay to MD: ED flags ₹3,000 crore foreign trade transactions at Rajesh Exports

Rajesh Exports has come under fresh pressure after the Enforcement Directorate said it found suspected foreign-exchange violations, missing foreign transaction records, stock discrepancies and possible share-price manipulation during search operations at the company’s premises in Bengaluru and Mumbai. The probe is the latest escalation in a sprawling regulatory case that began with Sebi’s earlier allegations that the gold major inflated revenue by about ₹15.15 lakh crore through overseas entities.

ED widens the lens

In its statement, the ED said it had searched nine locations and found suspicious set-offs of foreign trade receivables and payables worth about ₹3,000 crore involving UAE-based and other overseas counterparties. It also said the company had not produced records for claimed investments of ₹1,035 crore in African mines, and flagged irregular block trades and possible share-price manipulation. The agency described the missing documents and opaque netting as indicators of suspected FEMA breaches.

One of the most unusual parts of the ED release — and the line likely to draw the most attention — was the agency’s reference to Rajesh Exports’ remuneration structure. The release said the company’s chief financial officer had not received salary since 2020, while the managing director was paid only about ₹17,000 a month, even as the company reported consolidated revenue of roughly ₹7.7 lakh crore.

Where ED and Sebi overlap

The ED’s findings appear to line up with several of Sebi’s earlier concerns. Sebi had alleged that Rajesh Exports overstated revenue by about ₹15.15 lakh crore, largely through its Swiss refining arm Valcambi and dealings with unverified overseas entities. Sebi’s order also raised questions about unsubstantiated investments in African gold mines and fictitious transactions with a local broker.

That overlap matters. While Sebi’s case was framed as a disclosure and accounting issue, the ED is now approaching the same corporate trail through a FEMA and enforcement lens, focusing on foreign transactions, receivables-payables set-offs, stock mismatches and possible offshore flows. In other words, the new allegations do not replace the Sebi case; they deepen it.

Company denial and next steps

Rajesh Exports has denied wrongdoing in the Sebi matter and said the revenue issue stemmed from a communication gap over Valcambi-linked numbers. Company chairman Rajesh Mehta has also said he will not contest the Sebi interim order and is cooperating with the investigation.

Rajesh Exports shares fell 5% on Wednesday to close at ₹102.12 on the NSE. Since Sebi's interim order was issued after market hours on June 3, the stock has had a volatile run. From a closing price of ₹109.38 on June 3, the stock plunged to a low of ₹72.63 on June 15, marking a decline of nearly 34%. It has since recovered about 41% from those lows, but still remains around 7% below its pre-order closing level.