INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
PNB has mainly blamed a couple of Brady House branch employees for executing the fraud.Mumbai: Punjab National Bank (PNB) is closing nearly
all its operations in a Mumbai branch that was at the heart of a $2 billion fraud, according to four sources with knowledge of the decision
The move to downsize the Brady House branch, which has come to symbolise the biggest banking scandal in the country's history, comes as
India's second-largest state lender seeks to tighten controls and restore its reputation.The 123-year-old bank has lost more than half its
market value since the fraud came to light in late January.PNB will move all big client accounts out of the branch in downtown Mumbai that
according to an internal investigation saw "exceptional growth" in the past few years largely because of its controversial dealings with
firms owned by two related jewellers.PNB has alleged that a handful of staff at the branch issued fake bank guarantees between 2011 and 2017
to help the firms of Indian diamond magnate Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi raise billions of dollars in foreign credit
The duo have denied wrongdoing and are currently abroad.Fronted by an imposing colonial facade, the branch has a foreign exchange department
and handles mainly mid-sized corporate accounts
It also has a small retail operation, which will stay open after the restructuring, said the sources who declined to be named as the
discussions were not public.One of the sources with direct knowledge of the matter said that PNB was transferring some employees and big
accounts - each involving annual transactions of more than 500 million rupees ($7.28 million) - to large corporate branches for "better
monitoring"."The bank has already started moving accounts to neighbouring branches," said one of the sources
"Only a small retail banking operation will remain at the branch for the time being."The bank will consider similar steps for some other
branches too so that risks are minimised, said one of the sources.PNB Chief Executive Sunil Mehta did not respond to requests for comment on
He said in a statement on Friday that the bank was on track to "bounce back within six months".Three of the sources said that more than
two-dozen employees were informed this week about the decision to cut back the Brady House operations
The sources said the branch could eventually be shut down.Business at the branch's foreign exchange operations has come down "substantially"
since the fraud came to light, said one of the sources.PNB has mainly blamed a couple of Brady House employees for executing the fraud, but
Reuters reported last month that a 162-page investigation report by the bank has found widespread risk control and monitoring lapses by 54
