SEBI imposes $1 billion fine on property developer PACL, directors

Mumbai: India's market regulator on Tuesday imposed a penalty of 72.69 billion rupees ($1.10 billion) on property developer PACL and four of its directors for not complying with rules on selling investment products to public.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) said PACL and its directors made an illegal gain of about 24 billion rupees from so-called collective investment schemes in less than one year, according to a notice on the regulator's website.

The securities regulator asked the company and its directors to deposit the fine, which is three times the profit accrued to them, within 45 days of receiving the order.

PACL could not be reached outside office hours.

The SEBI order against PACL and its top executives came a month after an Indian appeals tribunal upheld a decision by the market regulator ordering PACL to return $7.5 billion to investors.

SEBI has stepped up its scrutiny of unregistered investment products over the past two years, plugging regulatory loopholes that had long allowed unregulated entities to raise billions of dollars from small investors.

Many ended up losing their life savings in pyramid schemes.