India seizes $725 million of Xiaomi assets over illegal remittances

Employees members stand close to the corporate brand at a Xiaomi retailer in Shanghai, China November 1, 2021. REUTERS/Aly Tune/Information

NEW DELHI, April 30 (Reuters) – India mentioned on Saturday it had seized $725 million from the native financial institution accounts of China’s Xiaomi Corp (1810.HK) after a probe discovered the smartphone maker had made unlawful remittances to overseas entities by passing them off as royalty funds.

The Enforcement Directorate had been investigating the Chinese language firm’s enterprise practices over suspected violations of Indian overseas change legal guidelines. learn extra

The monetary crime preventing company mentioned on Saturday it had seized the checking account property from Xiaomi Expertise India Personal Restricted after discovering the agency had remitted the overseas forex equal of 55.5 billion rupees to a few foreign-based entities, together with one Xiaomi group entity, “within the guise of royalty” funds.

The remittance to 2 different unidentified and unrelated U.S.-based entities was additionally for “the final word advantage of the Xiaomi group entities”, the company added in an announcement.

“Such enormous quantities within the title of royalties had been remitted on the directions of their Chinese language mother or father group entities,” the directorate mentioned.

Xiaomi mentioned in an announcement issued afterward Saturday that it complies with Indian legal guidelines and believed its “royalty funds and statements to the financial institution are all legit and truthful”.

“These royalty funds that Xiaomi India made had been for the in-licensed applied sciences and IPs utilized in our Indian model merchandise … we’re dedicated to working intently with authorities authorities to make clear any misunderstandings,” it added.

The directorate’s actions towards Xiaomi sign widening scrutiny of the Chinese language smartphone maker, whose India workplace was raided in December in a separate investigation over alleged revenue tax evasion. Another Chinese language smartphone markers had been additionally raided on the time.

Reuters reported on April 12 that Xiaomi’s former India head, Manu Kumar Jain, had been summoned for questioning as a part of the directorate’s investigation. learn extra

Jain, who’s now a world vp at Xiaomi primarily based in Dubai, appeared earlier than investigators earlier this month, mentioned a supply with direct information of the probe, asking to not be named because of the sensitivity of the matter.

The Enforcement Directorate additionally requested the corporate for particulars of overseas funding, shareholding and funding patterns, monetary statements and data of key executives operating the enterprise.

Xiaomi was India’s main smartphone vendor in 2021, with a 24% market share, in line with Counterpoint Analysis. South Korea’s Samsung was the No. 2 model with a 19% share.

Many Chinese language firms have struggled to do enterprise in India as a consequence of political tensions following a border conflict in 2020. India has cited safety issues in banning greater than 300 Chinese language apps since then, together with standard ones like TikTok, and in addition tightened norms for Chinese language firms investing in India.

Reporting by Aditya Kalra in New Delhi; Enhancing by William Mallard, Helen Popper and Mike Harrison

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