How Sebi uncovered a Rs 15 lakh crore revenue hole at Rajesh Exports

Key points

• It began with a complaint that could easily have gone unnoticed.
• In March 2024, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) received an email from a shareholder of Rajesh Exports alleging potential financial misrepresentation linked to large trade receivables that had remained outstanding for years.
• Two years later, that complaint has snowballed into what could become one of the biggest accounting controversies India has seen since Satyam.
• At the centre of Sebi's interim order is a startling allegation: Rajesh Exports may have misrepresented about Rs 15.15 lakh crore of revenue between FY21 and FY25 through its overseas subsidiaries and step-down subsidiaries.
• The figure is so large that it almost obscures the more important story.