SEBI begins seizing assets of property firm PACL

MUMBAI (Reuters) - The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) said on Monday it had begun seizing bank accounts and financial assets owned by PACL Ltd and its directors, saying the property developer had failed to refund 491 billion rupees ($7.3 billion) to investors as ordered.

India's capital market regulator ordered PACL in August last year to return money to investors, saying the company was running an illegal investment scheme that promised depositors returns on investments in agricultural land.

An Indian appeals tribunal in August this year upheld the regulator's refund order.

SEBI has stepped up its scrutiny of unregistered investment products over the past two years, plugging regulatory loopholes that had long allowed unregulated entities to raise billions of dollars from small investors.

PACL has argued it was selling land to customers and not investment schemes, and thus was not subject to SEBI's regulations.

($1 = 67.1700 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Himank Sharma; Editing by Rafael Nam and Mark Potter)