RAJESHEXPO

By Jayshree P Upadhyay

MUMBAI, June 5 (Reuters) - An official Indian investigation into gold company Rajesh Exports REXP.NS has alleged that the firm overstated revenue of its Swiss refining unit Valcambi to the tune of $159 billion - a figure unheard of in the country's accounting probes.

The scale of the alleged misreporting, released publicly by the markets regulator on Wednesday, has raised questions about how investors and analysts missed this, especially because India's state-run insurance giant LIC owns 11% of the company.

Rajesh Exports has denied wrongdoing. On Friday, in an exchange statement, the company said, "the major point mis-interpreted with regard to the revenues of the company is totally misplaced." Valcambi and LIC have not responded to Reuters queries.

Here are some of the Securities and Exchange Board of India's (SEBI) preliminary findings.

REVENUE INFLATION AND VALCAMBI

Valcambi, one of the world’s largest refiners of precious metals, was owned by European Gold Refineries until a 2015 all-cash sale to Rajesh Exports.

SEBI said Rajesh Exports allegedly inflated its reported India revenue by 15.15 trillion rupees ($158.93 billion) between April 2020 and March 2025. Almost all of the company's revenue was attributed to Valcambi, the group’s main operating entity, though its standalone accounts showed revenue of $70 million to $100 million, SEBI said.

Rajesh Exports Chairman Rajesh Mehta did not comment on the difference between Valcambi's revenues and the Indian unit's financials on Thursday, but he told Reuters all disclosures were correct.

"There seems to be some miscommunication with SEBI and a gap of information. The financials are perfect," Mehta said, adding that the company "will continue to cooperate."

Rajesh Exports is listed in Mumbai and its shares have fallen 10% in the wake of SEBI's order.

WHAT DOES RAJESH EXPORTS DO?

Rajesh Mehta and his brother started Rajesh Exports in 1989 in Bengaluru.

It has since expanded to 12 countries and calls itself a "global leader in the gold business," spanning refining to retailing.

The company gained global prominence after its 2015 acquisition of Valcambi for $400 million.

MISSING MINES IN AFRICA

SEBI has alleged that Rajesh Exports disclosed to Indian exchanges that it invested 10.35 billion Indian rupees in gold mines in Africa.

But an examination of the financial statements of its subsidiaries did not find "supporting documentation demonstrating the existence of the alleged investment in gold mines in Africa," according to SEBI's order.

When asked, Rajesh Exports told SEBI that investments in gold mines existed through foreign subsidiaries and the investment figures were “tallying and correct,” the order showed.

FICTITIOUS TRADES

SEBI said Rajesh Exports recorded "fictitious revenue" in its dealings with a local broker. More than 114 billion rupees were booked as sales and purchases despite a lack of evidence of genuine transactions or banking links.

SEBI started its probe into the company in 2024 after a complaint cited large, outstanding trade receivables.

SEBI appointed a forensic auditor who could verify only a fraction of the company's reported numbers due to a lack of documentation, the regulator said.

(Reporting by Jayshree P Upadhyay, additional reporting by Rajendra Jadhav in Mumbai; Editing by Aditya Kalra and Thomas Derpinghaus)

(([email protected]; 9920092491; Reuters Messaging: Twitter: @jaysh88))

** Shares of India's Rajesh Exports REXP.NS hit 5% lower circuit to 103.92 rupees

** Markets regulator in an order alleged on Wednesday that the jewellery maker inflated its revenue scale over years, largely via unverified overseas entities, to the tune of 15.15 trillion rupees ($158.3 billion)

** Bars company and its owners from securities markets until it completes investigation

** The regulator said 97%–99% of Rajesh Exports' consolidated revenue came from overseas subsidiaries, particularly Switzerland-based Valcambi SA

** Adds that the company systematically did not disclose its subsidiaries' financials in the public domain

** YTD, REXP stock down 43.3%

(Reporting by Vivek Kumar M)

(([email protected];))

By Jayshree P Upadhyay

MUMBAI, June 3 (Reuters) - The India markets regulator in an order on Wednesday alleged that jewellery maker Rajesh Exports REXP.NS inflated its revenue scale over years, largely via unverified overseas entities, to the tune of 15.15 trillion rupees ($158.30 billion).

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has barred the company and its owner from the securities markets till it completes its investigation.

Rajesh Exports and the company's owner did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Here are the key violations flagged in the order -

• The regulator said 97%–99% of Rajesh Exports' consolidated revenue came from overseas subsidiaries, particularly Switzerland-based Valcambi SA. But the company systematically did not disclose its subsidiaries' financials in the public domain

• Valcambi SA was projected as the principal operating entity, but disclosed negligible standalone revenues in its audited financial statements

• By doing so, Rajesh Exports misrepresented approximately 15.15 trillion rupees, which represented 99.80% of its revenues from subsidiaries between fiscal 2020-21 and 2024-25.

• Per the order, Rajesh Exports recorded 114.87 billion rupees in sales and 114.88 billion rupees in purchases with an entity, Affluence Shares and Stocks Private Limited, but Affluence denied any such transactions.

• The regulator alleged that these were non‑genuine entries linked to owner Rajesh Mehta’s personal derivative trades, used to inflate turnover without real economic activity.

• SEBI alleged that Rajesh Exports routed company funds worth 3.39 billion rupees to the owner Mehta’s personal accounts, including for derivative trades, without board or audit committee approval and without proper related‑party disclosures.

• A total of 9.26 billion rupees was routed without approvals or disclosures.

• SEBI has estimated wealth erosion of the company's shareholders, including small shareholders, at 127.26 billion rupees due to the misrepresentation and fund diversion.

($1 = 95.7050 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Jayshree P Upadhyay; Editing by Devika Syamnath)

(([email protected]; 9920092491; Reuters Messaging: Twitter: @jaysh88))

** Indian gems and jewellery stocks fall between 1.45% and 4.75%

** Donald Trump launches unfair trade practice probes into 16 key trading partners, including India, to restore tariffs recently struck down by Supreme Court as illegal

** Indian gems and jewellery companies have higher exposure to U.S. markets

** Kalyan Jewellers KALN.NS, PC Jeweller PCJE.NS and Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri TBZL.NS fall 1.5% to 2.11%

** Thangamayil Jewellery THNG.NS and Rajesh Exports REXP.NS lose the most - down 4.75% and 4.6%, respectively

** Bluestone BLUT.NS and Titan TITN.NS shed 2.7 and 2.5%, respectively

** BLUT and THNG only stocks among pack to post YTD gains

(Reporting by Urvi Dugar in Bengaluru)

(([email protected];))

March 7 (Reuters) - Rajesh Exports Ltd REXP.NS:

• REPORT ON BATTERY PLANT DELAY PENALTIES IS INCORRECT

Source text: ID:nNSE1vGrpX

Further company coverage: REXP.NS

(([email protected];;))

By Linda Pasquini, Agata Rybska

Nov 20 (Reuters) - Japan's Seven & i Holdings 3382.T received a buyout proposal from a member of its founding Ito family last week, a potential $58 billion white-knight bid which would see the company go private and allow it to continue operating under current management.

Many global retailers have opted to stay privately owned or have founding families which have retained significant stakes.

An index compiled by EY and University of St. Gallen at the beginning of 2023 listed the 500 largest family businesses globally ranked by revenue. Below is a list of the biggest 20 family-owned retailers, both publicly listed and private, which all appeared within the top 100.

WALMART WMT.N:

The biggest of all family businesses, American omnichannel retailer Walmart was founded in 1962 by Sam Walton, and is currently headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas.

The Walton family currently holds 45.5% of its shares outstanding, according to LSEG data.

SCHWARZ GROUP:

The parent company of German supermarket chains Lidl and Kaufland is owned by Dieter Schwarz, son of its founder Josef Schwarz.

The group, which was established in 1930, has about 13,900 stores and 575,000 employees in 32 countries.

LVMH LVMH.PA:

The Paris-based luxury goods group was founded in 1987 via a merger of Moët Hennessy and Louis Vuitton, and has since 1989 been headed by Bernard Arnault, with his five children recently moving up the ranks of company management.

The Arnault family currently holds 48.8% of shares outstanding, according to LSEG data.

NIKE NKE.N:

The U.S.-based sportswear giant was co-founded by Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman in 1964 as "Blue Ribbon Sports".

Knight is currently Chair Emeritus of the board of directors and attends meetings of the board as a non-voting observer, after serving as Nike's president for a total of 25 years.

According to Nike's 2024 notice of annual meeting, Phil Knight and his son Travis Knight own more than 97% of outstanding Class A shares along with the holding companies and trusts they control, such as Swoosh LLC.

LOBLAW COMPANIES L.TO:

Loblaw is a Canadian food and pharmacy retailer headquartered in Brampton, Canada.

The largest investor is George Weston Ltd, founded by George Weston in 1882, which owns 53.8%. George Weston is controlled by the Weston family, including Galen G. Weston Galen, 51, chair and director of Loblaw Companies Ltd.

L'ORÉAL OREP.PA:

The French cosmetics maker was founded in 1909 by Eugène Schueller and is headquartered in Clichy.

Its biggest shareholder is the Bettencourt-Meyers family, which holds 34.8% of the shares according to LSEG data.

ELO:

France's Elo is the owner of supermarket chain Auchan, which was founded in 1961 by Gérard Mulliez and has its headquarters in Croix, France. The Mulliez family has a 98% stake in the unlisted group Elo, and controls stores such as home improvement and gardening outlet Leroy Merlin or sporting goods chain Decathlon.

HEB GROCERY:

The Butt family owns all the voting shares in the American grocery giant H-E-B. The private company has its headquarters in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded by Florence Butt in 1905, and her grandson Charles Butt currently is the chairperson of the company.

RAJESH EXPORTS REXP.NS:

The Indian jeweller was founded in 1989 by its current Executive Chair Rajesh Mehta.

The Mehta family controls 54.55% of the business, according to a statement on the company's website.

INDITEX ITX.MC:

The world's largest listed fashion retailer was founded in 1985 in Spain by Amancio Ortega as a holding company for the Zara brand and its manufacturing plants.

Amancio Ortega controls about 59% of Inditex capital through Pontegadea Inversiones and Partler Participaciones, with a 5% stake held by daughter Sandra Ortega.

ALDI GROUP:

Aldi's family-owned business was founded in 1913 in Germany. In 1961, brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht divided the business into two legally and economically independent companies, supermarket chains ALDI Nord and ALDI Sued.

The two sister businesses served initially north and south Germany and then expanded to much of Europe as well as the United States and Australia.

MERCADONA:

Mercadona, the Spanish supermarket and online shopping company, was created in 1977 by Francisco Roig Ballester and his wife Trinidad Alfonso Mocholí as part of the Cárnicas Roig Group.

Juan Roig, son of the founders, is the president of the company, with the family making up the majority of the board.

The Roig family holds 100% of the shares in Mercadona according to the EY St Gallen Family Business Index.

C&S WHOLESALE GROCERS LLC:

The U.S.-based supply chain solutions provider and wholesale grocery supplier was founded in 1918. In addition to its core business, it operates and supports corporate grocery stores.

Its owner and Executive Chair Rick Cohen is the third generation of the Cohen family to lead the company.

JERONIMO MARTINS JMT.LS:

Founded at the end of the 18th century, the Portuguese retailer, owner of Pingo Doce supermarkets, was acquired by Francisco Manuel dos Santos in 1921 and has been led by the dos Santos family ever since. Pedro Soares dos Santos is the current CEO of the company and the family owns over 56% of the Jeronimo Martins share capital through the Sociedade Francisco Manuel dos Santos.

EMPIRE COMPANY EMPa.TO:

The Canada-based company operates in food retail through the supermarket chain Sobeys, which was founded in 1907 by John W. Sobey as a meat delivery business.

Members of the Sobey family are still involved in the management of the group, which was incorporated in 1963.

H&M HMb.ST:

The Swedish fashion retailer has its headquarters in Stockholm. It was founded by Erling Persson in 1947.

His son, Stefan Persson and his family are H&M's largest shareholders via Ramsbury Invest AB, which holds all the class A shares, which give 10 votes per share, as well as a portion of class B shares, totalling 61% of all shares. The family of Lottie Tham, Stefan's sister, holds 5.5%.

Stefan Persson's son, Karl-Johan Persson, is the board's chairperson, having served previously as H&M's CEO from 2009 to 2020.

COMPAGNIEFINANCIERE RICHEMONT CFR.S:

Cartier-owner Richemont was formed in 1988, when the Rembrandt Group spun off its non-South African operations into the new entity.

The Swiss luxury group, which also owns Swiss watchmakers IWC, Piaget and Jaeger-LeCoulture, is controlled by Chair Johan Rupert via a combination of two categories of shares that gives him 51% of the voting rights.

KERING PRTP.PA:

The France-based Gucci owner is led by the founder's son, François-Henri Pinault, who has been CEO of the group since 2005.

The Pinault family owns 42% of the shares and nearly 60% of voting rights in the company, which was established in 1962 by François Pinault as a timber trading company and listed on the Paris Stock Exchange in 1988, before shifting its focus to the luxury sector in the late 1990s.

LOVES TRAVEL STOPS & COUNTRY STORES:

The U.S. based privately-owned chain operates truck travel stops as well as fuelling stations with attached convenience stores and has about 650 locations in 42 states.

It was founded in 1964 by Tom and Judy Love and is owned by their four children.

Their sons Greg and Frank have been co-CEOs since 2014.

FAST RETAILING 9983.T:

The Japanese operator of the Uniqlo clothing chain was founded in 1949 and currently headed by Tadashi Yanai, Japan's richest man and Uniqlo brand founder.

Yanai, 75, who has long aimed to make Fast Retailing the world's biggest fashion retailer, currently holds a 17.19% stake in the company, according to LSEG data. The stake held by his family in total amounts to 41.28%.

(Reporting by Linda Pasquini and Agata Rybska in Gdansk; Editing by Matt Scuffham and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

(([email protected];))

Aug 14 (Reuters) - Rajesh Exports Ltd REXP.NS:

• RAJESH EXPORTS JUNE-QUARTER CONSOL NET PAT 118.6 MILLION RUPEES

• RAJESH EXPORTS JUNE-QUARTER CONSOL INCOME FROM OPERATIONS 603.55 BILLION RUPEES

Source text for Eikon: ID:nNSE3k48tR

Further company coverage: REXP.NS

(([email protected];))

** Shares of Rajesh Exports REXP.NS down 6.4% at 315.20 rupees

** Stock fell as much as 10.9% earlier to 300.3 rupees, posting lowest level since June 2015

** Jewellery maker's Q3 consolidated net profit after tax falls around 97.1% Y/Y to 124.3 mln rupees ($1.5 mln)

** Net sales drop nearly 31%

** Stock posts biggest intraday pct loss since Dec; on track for a second consecutive week of losses, if trends hold

** More than 1.8 mln shares traded by 10:30 a.m. IST, 3.6x the 30-day avg

** Stock down 14% so far this year, smaller than the 49.9% loss in 2023

($1 = 83.0050 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Navamya Ganesh Acharya in Bengaluru)

(([email protected]; +91 8805175330 ;))

** Shares of jewelry maker Rajesh Exports REXP.NS down as much as 11.6% at 334.05 rupees in the session, their lowest since July 1, 2015

** REXP closes 6.6% lower, stock declined over 50% YTD

** Stock posts biggest intraday percentage loss since May 4, 2020

** Reuters could not immediately ascertain the reason for stock move

** More than 9.3 mln shares traded, 4.5x their 30-day avg

(Reporting by Rama Venkat in Bengaluru)

(([email protected]; https://twitter.com/ramavenkat0607;))

** Shares of Rajesh Exports Ltd REXP.NS fall as much as 8.4% to 402 rupees, hitting lowest since Sept. 2015

** Jewellery maker's Q2 consolidated net profit after tax fell around 88% to 453.1 mln rupees ($5.45 mln)

** Net sales more than halved to 380.66 bln rupees

** REXP marks sharpest intraday pct fall in over 5-months

** More than 2.9 mln shares traded by 2:25 p.m. IST, 1.6x the 30-day avg

** Stock last down 8%, taking YTD slide to ~45%

($1 = 83.1499 Indian rupees)

(Reporitng by Nishit Navin)

(([email protected];))