08-03-2008, 08:51 PM
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Govt allows unqualified firm to take care of Indian airports </b>
Pioneer.com
J Gopikrishnan | New Delhi
An unknown company from the little-known Cayman Islands has received the green signal from the UPA Government to make a massive investment in construction and renovation of airports in India. The Pioneer investigation has revealed that the company -- Agam SPV Six Limited -- is not registered with Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA), the financial regulator of the Islands to prevent money laundering and terrorist funding. Â
The US, European Union, International Monetary Fund and United Nation's financial monitoring authorities have made registration to CIMA mandatory for carrying out internal business activities.
On May 1, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) had given clearance to <b>Agam SPV Six Limited of the Cayman Islands to invest $300 million (Rs 1,170 crore) to invest in India for building new airports and renovating the existing ones</b>. The CCEA also allowed it to float a 100 per cent foreign equity company in India in this regard.Â
...
Under international pressure, in 2004 the regulatory body -- CIMA -- was created to monitor the activities of financial services. As per the agreement with the treasuries of the US and EU, the main function of the CIMA is to licence, monitor and audit the fund flow of the companies registered with it. CIMA registration is mandatory for all Islands-registered companies to operate in the US and the European Union. The Agam SPV Six Ltd, which got clearance to invest Rs 1170 crore in India, is not registered for doing business with major world community.
The Agam SPV Six Ltd's holding company detail is like a puzzle. The company was incorporated as per the rules of Cayman Islands on February 2007, says a Press release by the CCEA. According to it, the said company is a subsidiary of 'The Agam Fund Limited', which in turn is a subsidiary of Sigma Asset Management (Guernsey) Ltd, and located at Guernsey Islands, between the UK and France.
Sigma Asset Management is owned by another company in London -- Atlas Capital Associates, which in turn is owned by Atlas Capital Group. None of the companies has any expertise in the aviation business. Information available with The Pioneer shows that only the first holding company, <b>'The Agam Fund Limited', is registered with CIMA (Licence No 11944, registered as a mutual fund on October 2, 2006), </b>while the Agam SPV Six, which claims to be its subsidiary and which intends to invest Rs 1170 crore in India, is not licenced with CIMA.
Lalit Bhasin, president of the India International Bar Association, said, "Both the parent and subsidiary company are separate legal entities in the eyes of the law. The subsidiary company cannot use the parent company to enter into a business association."
<b>When The Pioneer contacted the Finance Ministry of Cayman Islands about the background of Agam SPV Six, they advised that the CIMA website be checked. But the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) in New Delhi was reluctant to give any detail about the company</b>. The same was the case with the Finance Ministry. The Pioneer had requested the Finance Secretary, who is also the chairperson of FIPB, to explain the Government's reasons for giving clearance to a non-regulated company. But despite two faxes and a month-long wait, the Finance Secretary has not yet bothered to respond.
Not in right company
Cayman Islands was blacklisted by the international community in 2001 for laundering money and financing terror
The Islands has a population of 50,000 but more than 80,000 companies are registered there
After pressure from international agencies, the Islands created a regulatory body (CIMA). Any company registered on Cayman Islands must be registered with CIMA for international operation
On May 1, CCEA cleared Agam SPV Six Limited of the Cayman Islands to invest $300 million to build/renovate airports
Only the holding company is registered with CIMA, that too as a mutual fund
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Before this government falls, Babus and Congress is closing every single deal to make money. <!--emo&
--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Pioneer.com
J Gopikrishnan | New Delhi
An unknown company from the little-known Cayman Islands has received the green signal from the UPA Government to make a massive investment in construction and renovation of airports in India. The Pioneer investigation has revealed that the company -- Agam SPV Six Limited -- is not registered with Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA), the financial regulator of the Islands to prevent money laundering and terrorist funding. Â
The US, European Union, International Monetary Fund and United Nation's financial monitoring authorities have made registration to CIMA mandatory for carrying out internal business activities.
On May 1, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) had given clearance to <b>Agam SPV Six Limited of the Cayman Islands to invest $300 million (Rs 1,170 crore) to invest in India for building new airports and renovating the existing ones</b>. The CCEA also allowed it to float a 100 per cent foreign equity company in India in this regard.Â
...
Under international pressure, in 2004 the regulatory body -- CIMA -- was created to monitor the activities of financial services. As per the agreement with the treasuries of the US and EU, the main function of the CIMA is to licence, monitor and audit the fund flow of the companies registered with it. CIMA registration is mandatory for all Islands-registered companies to operate in the US and the European Union. The Agam SPV Six Ltd, which got clearance to invest Rs 1170 crore in India, is not registered for doing business with major world community.
The Agam SPV Six Ltd's holding company detail is like a puzzle. The company was incorporated as per the rules of Cayman Islands on February 2007, says a Press release by the CCEA. According to it, the said company is a subsidiary of 'The Agam Fund Limited', which in turn is a subsidiary of Sigma Asset Management (Guernsey) Ltd, and located at Guernsey Islands, between the UK and France.
Sigma Asset Management is owned by another company in London -- Atlas Capital Associates, which in turn is owned by Atlas Capital Group. None of the companies has any expertise in the aviation business. Information available with The Pioneer shows that only the first holding company, <b>'The Agam Fund Limited', is registered with CIMA (Licence No 11944, registered as a mutual fund on October 2, 2006), </b>while the Agam SPV Six, which claims to be its subsidiary and which intends to invest Rs 1170 crore in India, is not licenced with CIMA.
Lalit Bhasin, president of the India International Bar Association, said, "Both the parent and subsidiary company are separate legal entities in the eyes of the law. The subsidiary company cannot use the parent company to enter into a business association."
<b>When The Pioneer contacted the Finance Ministry of Cayman Islands about the background of Agam SPV Six, they advised that the CIMA website be checked. But the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) in New Delhi was reluctant to give any detail about the company</b>. The same was the case with the Finance Ministry. The Pioneer had requested the Finance Secretary, who is also the chairperson of FIPB, to explain the Government's reasons for giving clearance to a non-regulated company. But despite two faxes and a month-long wait, the Finance Secretary has not yet bothered to respond.
Not in right company
Cayman Islands was blacklisted by the international community in 2001 for laundering money and financing terror
The Islands has a population of 50,000 but more than 80,000 companies are registered there
After pressure from international agencies, the Islands created a regulatory body (CIMA). Any company registered on Cayman Islands must be registered with CIMA for international operation
On May 1, CCEA cleared Agam SPV Six Limited of the Cayman Islands to invest $300 million to build/renovate airports
Only the holding company is registered with CIMA, that too as a mutual fund
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Before this government falls, Babus and Congress is closing every single deal to make money. <!--emo&
--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' /><!--endemo-->