SFIO to hire more than 40 consultants

The Serious Fraud Investigation Office plans to rope in more than 40 consultants in law, financial analysis and other areas, as it looks to boost the manpower strength.
The probe agency, which comes under the Corporate Affairs Ministry, has been hiring skilled manpower from diverse fields in recent times.
The latest decision to augment the head count also comes against the backdrop of authorities, including SFIO, stepping up efforts to clamp down on shell companies -- which are generally used for illicit fund flows.
As many as 16 law and 11 financial analysis consultants are to be recruited.
Besides, the investigation agency will hire 14 more consultants in diverse areas, including banking, management accountancy, audit & accounts, and general administration.

Initially, these consultants would be engaged for six months.

The posts would be at SFIO offices in the national capital, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata.
In a public notice, the agency said it "proposes to engage individual consultants to assist investigation process in distinct fields".
Consultants in the area of financial analysis will be required to critically analyse corporate announcements made by the listed companies as well as study financial reports of the firms under investigation and make complex financial analysis among others.
They will also assist "investigation teams in forensic audit, examination/ scrutiny of board minutes, directors reports and other schedules and documents," as per the notice.

In nearly four years, the ministry has ordered SFIO probe into the affairs of more than 430 companies.
The government, in March, informed Parliament that SFIO had found that chartered accountants and advocates helped 559 people launder Rs 3,790 crore in cash.
Without giving direct reply to a query on whether shell companies swindled Rs 3,900 crore during the demonetisation period, Minister of State for Corporate Affairs Arjun Ram Meghwal had said, "In one of the investigations by SFIO, it was found that a group of 11 companies had laundered money to the extent of Rs 3,790 crore during the period 2004-05 to August, 2010".

SFIO identified 54 professionals who helped 559 beneficiaries in laundering the illicit cash, the minister had said.
The professionals included 34 chartered accountants, three company secretaries, 4 advocates and 13 others, he had said.