In a significant acknowledgement of India’s progress in strengthening its financial crime enforcement framework, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on Wednesday commended the country’s efforts in investigating and recovering assets linked to money laundering, cybercrime, economic offences, and terror financing. In its newly released global report on asset recovery, the Paris-based watchdog highlighted several cases where India’s Enforcement Directorate (ED) played a decisive role in identifying, freezing, and returning proceeds of crime to victims or the state.

The FATF’s 340-page report, titled “Asset Recovery Guidance and Best Practices”, is designed to provide global policymakers and investigative agencies with detailed recommendations on tackling criminal proceeds across jurisdictions. It outlines how countries can better trace illegal funds, take early action to freeze them, manage seized properties, and ensure that victims receive compensation wherever possible. According to the ED, which issued a statement summarising India’s contribution to the report, the guidance sets a benchmark for nations to refine their asset recovery frameworks and align their enforcement mechanisms with global best practices.

For India, the report constitutes an important diplomatic and regulatory milestone. FATF evaluations and periodic publications play a major role in shaping a country’s global reputation regarding anti-money laundering (AML) efforts and its effectiveness in preventing terror financing. The inclusion of India—and specifically the ED—in multiple sections suggests growing international appreciation of the country’s capacity to handle complex, cross-border financial crimes.

One of the key examples highlighted is the ED’s investigation into the Rose Valley Ponzi scam, an extensive financial fraud that defrauded lakhs of investors. The case, one of the largest economic offences in eastern India, involved a web of shell companies, fake schemes, and illicit transfers. According to the FATF report, the ED’s intervention ensured large-scale identification of assets linked to the scam, enabling authorities to move forward with restitution efforts.

Another prominent case cited is a cybercrime-linked probe initiated after a request from United States authorities. Here, ED officers seized Bitcoins worth ₹130 crore, tracing digital wallets linked to drug trafficking and money laundering networks operating across countries. The FATF noted the sophistication with which investigators coordinated on cross-border intelligence, tracked blockchain activity, and carried out searches that led to the seizure of cryptocurrency and other illicit assets.

The report also references the ED’s joint work with the Andhra Pradesh Police CID in a major investment fraud case, where authorities restored ₹6,000 to the victims after recovering proceeds through the attachment of assets. While the amount was modest, the FATF emphasised the procedural integrity of coordination between central and state-level agencies, especially in cases where investors were misled by small-scale but widespread fraudulent schemes.

A more substantial example pertains to the alleged diversion of public funds from a Maharashtra-based cooperative bank. The ED not only traced the money but later restored benami assets worth ₹280 crore to the victims after auctioning the seized properties. These properties have been earmarked as the site for a new airport, a point the FATF highlighted as a rare instance where the restitution of assets could help build public infrastructure.

The FATF’s praise extends to India’s legal framework, particularly the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA)and the Fugitive Economic Offenders (FEO) Act. The latter, enacted in 2018 after a string of high-profile economic offenders fled the country, has been cited as an example of the doctrine of “fugitive disentitlement.” Under this doctrine, individuals who evade judicial proceedings by staying outside India’s jurisdiction can have their properties confiscated without a conviction—one of the most stringent measures available globally. The Act applies when the proceeds of crime exceed ₹100 crore, and empowers authorities to attach or confiscate overseas assets belonging to fugitives.

The FATF report mentions India’s use of value-based or corresponding value attachment—where authorities can confiscate assets of equivalent value if the actual proceeds of crime are difficult to trace—a practice that several major enforcement systems globally also use. The ED stated that its operational experience and input helped shape sections of the report relating to provisional attachment of properties, inter-agency coordination, and technical standards for managing seized assets.

Perhaps the most striking illustration of international cooperation highlighted by the FATF is the case involving Banmeet Singh, a key figure in a drug trafficking and money laundering network. The United States sent a mutual legal assistance request to India, seeking action against Singh and two others. Acting upon it, the ED conducted search operations that led to the recovery of 268.22 Bitcoins, valued at approximately ₹1.3 billion (USD 29 million), and attached immovable assets worth USD 1.1 million. The FATF noted that the case demonstrates India’s responsiveness in transnational crime matters, and its ability to help foreign governments track and retrieve assets.

Beyond individual cases, the report also focuses on India’s procedural and technological innovations. It highlights the coordination undertaken between law enforcement agencies, financial intelligence units, and tax authorities, as well as India’s use of data analytics and digital tools to track suspicious transactions. These practices, FATF says, strengthen the country’s capability to conduct real-time monitoring and targeted interventions.

The ED noted that having its investigations included in a global FATF report reinforces India’s position as a serious participant in global AML and counter-terrorism financing frameworks. It added that the FATF’s guidance aims to push all countries to improve asset recovery outcomes significantly, in collaboration with global partners.

For India, which is preparing for future rounds of FATF evaluations, such international recognition carries not only reputational value but also diplomatic weight. The ED’s work on recovering assets linked to fugitives, cross-border fraud, and digital currency-related crimes reinforces the narrative that the country is strengthening its enforcement ecosystem at a time when economic offences have grown more technologically sophisticated.

As financial crimes continue to evolve, the FATF’s report places India at the centre of the global conversation on asset tracing, recovery, and restitution—areas that will shape both national security and global financial integrity in the years ahead.