De La Rue, a banknote printer, said on Friday that it had learned that the group’s activities in India prior to 2016 were being investigated by a top Indian investigation agency.
The British group stated that it was aware from “publicly available sources” that India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) was investigating the former Indian finance secretary Arvind Mayaram’s conduct, but that it had not received any official direct communication from the agency.
De La Rue said in a statement the allegations relating to the group had no merit and it was seeking legal advice, but declined to comment further on the nature of the charges. The company confirmed it had supplied security threads for banknotes in India prior to 2016.
The company also said it has suspended its note-printing operations in Kenya and it did not expect any new orders from the African country’s central bank for the next 12 months due to low market demand.
However, its joint venture with the Kenyan government, through which its operations in the country are conducted, remains active, the company added.
“The company continues to explore further business opportunities, both in Kenya and for export from Kenya, with a view to restarting production if the economic climate permits,” De La Rue said.
