India Post global money transfer comes under ED scanner

Global money transfer and banking operations of the country’s postal department are being scanned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and other agencies for suspected terror-financing and hawala-like transactions.

At present, there are no other official channels, besides the pure banking route, to transfer or receive money from abroad.

The Department of Posts had started this service in association with US-based Western Union Financial Services in April 2001 and customers could send or receive money from 205 countries through this.

According to top finance ministry sources, ED and the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) — an agency to monitor suspect financing in Indian financial channels — have initiated steps to check the remittances and transactions on the wires on a “real time basis”. In 2008-09, India Post had delivered remittances to the tune of more than Rs 7,649 crore.

While ED has asked India Post to keep a check on all “kinds of transactions” and inform it of suspect transactions, FIU has asked the service provider to strictly comply with the reporting norms.

Under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, all banking entities or financial intermediaries that facilitate telegraphic or wire transfers or electronic remittances have to report the nature and value of the transactions to FIU.

“Also, the banking operations conducted by India Post have been largely unregulated. There are many small accounts with a lot of money. The enforcement agencies are now tracking remittances and withdrawals,” a source said.