ICICI Bank: Shveta Sharma shifted to India with her husband in 2016 (Representational)
An Indian-origin woman - who returned to India in 2016 from the US- has alleged that she was duped of Rs 13.5 crore by a manager at the ICICI Bank by engaging in "fraudulent activities."
The woman told the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) that she had transferred Rs 13.5 crore from her bank account in the US to the ICICI Bank, to have the invested in fixed deposits. She expected that the investment would grow to more than Rs 16 crore in the coming years.
Shveta Sharma, who shifted to India with her husband in 2016, says she met the accused bank manager through a friend.
The bank manager, the woman alleged, suggested she invest her savings in fixed deposits that offered an interest rate of 5.5% to 6% since the interest rate on bank deposits in the US was negligible.
"He gave me fake statements, created a fake email ID in my name and manipulated my mobile number in the bank records so I won't get any withdrawal notifications," Shveta Sharma told the BBC.
"Over a period of four years from September 2019 to December 2023, we deposited our entire life savings of around Rs 13.5 crore in the bank," she said, adding that "with interest, the sum would have grown to more than Rs 16 crore."
Ms Sharma said she discovered earlier this year in January that all her money had vanished after another official at the bank offered her better returns.
An ICICI Bank spokesperson told the BBC that the accused manager has been suspended "pending investigation."
"We have also lodged a complaint with the Economic Offences Wingh (EOW) of the Delhi Police and we have to wait until the police investigation is complete. She will get all her money back, along with the interest, once her allegation is proven to be true. But unfortunately, she has to wait," the spokesperson told the BBC.
He said it was "bewildering" that she remained "unaware of these transactions and balances in her account over the past three years.
What ICICI Bank Said
"We have communicated to the customer that we are ready to transfer the disputed amount of Rs 9.27 crore (she has already encashed a fixed deposit of Rs 2 crore) to her account with a lien, pending the outcome of the investigation," ICICI bank said in a statement.
"The Bank has consistently sent transaction details to her registered mobile number and email ID since the accounts were opened a few years ago. It is bewildering that the customer claims to be unaware of these transactions and balances in her account over the past three years, and she only recently noticed a discrepancy in her account balance. This discrepancy ought to have been observed by the customer when filing Income Tax returns as well. She alleges that the mobile number and email ID of her account were changed without her knowledge. However, our records indicate that notifications regarding both changes were sent to her original mobile number and email address which were registered with the Bank. Furthermore, the new number is listed on the website of a company owned by the customer herself," the bank said.
The ICICI bank said as an "aggrieved party", they have "lodged a complaint with the Economic Offences Wing (EoW) of Delhi Police for a thorough investigation into the matter which appears to be much more than meets the eye. We are extending full cooperation to the Police investigation."