SEBI cancels Growpital farmland scheme, finds unregistered collective investment
Business
SEBI has pulled the plug on Growpital's farmland investment plan after finding it was running as an unregistered collective investment scheme.
The company had collected ₹192.88 crore from 5,208 investors, promising returns that didn't really add up: investors never actually owned any land.
Eight noticees must repay investors
Eight main noticees behind the scheme, including Rituraj Sharma and Yotta Agro Ventures, now have to pay back investors with 12% annual interest starting January 29, 2024.
They are also banned from the securities market for five years or until everyone gets their money back.
SEBI is redistributing ₹50 crore already set aside and will recover more using assets and receivables.
Plus, 20 others who helped out are banned from trading for three years.