ED seizes assets worth Rs 131.45 crore, luxury yacht in OctaFX forest case: Know the inside story

The luxury yacht, 'Cherry', is an Italian model commercial yacht cruising in the Western Mediterranean.

The Enforcement Directorate has attached properties, including the luxury yacht Cherry and two high-end residential properties in Spain worth Rs 131.45 crore, in connection with the probe into unauthorised forex trading platform OctaFX.

The luxury yacht, “Cherry”, is an Italian model commercial yacht cruising in the Western Mediterranean.

These assets reportedly belong to Russian national Pavel Prozorov, the alleged mastermind behind the platform OctaFx. This case is linked to the Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket tournament and several celebrities for promotion and endorsements on social media.

According to News18, this is the second instance of offshore property attachments in this case. Earlier, the probe agency attached 19 properties in Spain and other assets worth Rs 296 crore. The first attachment involved properties in Dubai.

The Enforcement Directorate has attached properties, including the luxury yacht Cherry and two high-end residential properties in Spain worth Rs 131.45 crore, in connection with the probe into unauthorised forex trading platform OctaFX.

The luxury yacht, “Cherry”, is an Italian model commercial yacht cruising in the Western Mediterranean.

These assets reportedly belong to Russian national Pavel Prozorov, the alleged mastermind behind the platform OctaFx. This case is linked to the Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket tournament and several celebrities for promotion and endorsements on social media.

According to News18, this is the second instance of offshore property attachments in this case. Earlier, the probe agency attached 19 properties in Spain and other assets worth Rs 296 crore. The first attachment involved properties in Dubai.

How did the case unfold?

The report by News18 stated that OctaFX reportedly generated over Rs 800 crore in illicit proceeds by duping thousands of Indian investors in nine months. The platform also disguised itself as a legitimate forex broker and lured unsuspecting victims with glittering advertisements on social media, even splashing its name across IPL campaigns.

However, according to reports, it laundered funds by collecting investor money through mule accounts in the names of fake e-commerce firms. OctaFX also reportedly  changed its login URLs and web addresses to obscure its fraudulent operations from investors.

“The directorate initiated investigation on the basis of an FIR registered by Shivaji Nagar PS, Pune against several individuals for defrauding investors by falsely promising high returns through the OctaFX forex trading platform. And the investigation revealed that OctaFX, an unauthorised forex broker promoted via IPL, social media and celebrities, laundered funds by collecting investor money through mule accounts in the names of fake e-commerce firms,” the ED statement read.

The report by News18 stated that OctaFX reportedly generated over Rs 800 crore in illicit proceeds by duping thousands of Indian investors in nine months. The platform also disguised itself as a legitimate forex broker and lured unsuspecting victims with glittering advertisements on social media, even splashing its name across IPL campaigns.

However, according to reports, it laundered funds by collecting investor money through mule accounts in the names of fake e-commerce firms.

“The directorate initiated investigation on the basis of an FIR registered by Shivaji Nagar PS, Pune against several individuals for defrauding investors by falsely promising high returns through the OctaFX forex trading platform. And the investigation revealed that OctaFX, an unauthorised forex broker promoted via IPL, social media and celebrities, laundered funds by collecting investor money through mule accounts in the names of fake e-commerce firms,” the ED statement read.