The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued a compounding order under Section 15 of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) concerning Ripe Accountancy Services Private Limited. This action has led to the termination of proceedings against the company for violating FEMA provisions, as confirmed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
The RBI’s order mandates a one-time payment of Rs 1.77 lakh by the company, following the ED’s issuance of the necessary “no objection” in the matter. Section 15 of FEMA allows individuals or entities to acknowledge a breach of FEMA regulations, pay a penalty, and rectify the violation without undergoing prolonged legal processes.
The ED initiated an investigation into this case based on credible information received under FEMA regulations. Subsequently, the ED lodged a complaint with the Adjudicating Authority, highlighting the company’s failure to report foreign inward remittance amounting to Rs 10.39 lakh within the stipulated timeframe. Additionally, the firm delayed filing the Foreign Currency-Gross Provisional Return (FC-GPR) for Rs 99,000.
The company also neglected to refund excess share application funds of Rs 9,40,451 within the specified period. Furthermore, it failed to submit Foreign Liabilities and Assets (FLA) returns in the prescribed annual reporting format mandated by the RBI under the Foreign Exchange Management Act. Following this, the company applied to the RBI for compounding these violations under FEMA Section 15.
Upon RBI’s referral, the ED granted a no objection for the compounding in alignment with the Act’s principles. Consequently, the RBI, based on the ED’s no objection, compounded these infractions through an order dated January 30, 2026.
