The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Wednesday again cautioned the public not to undertake forex transactions on unauthorised electronic trading platforms (ETPs) or remit/deposit money for unauthorised forex transactions.
The central bank also released a list of 34 entities that are neither authorised to deal in forex under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999 nor authorised to operate electronic trading platforms for forex transactions.
In an official notification on September 7, RBI said the ‘Alert List’ is not exhaustive and is based on what was known to RBI at the time of this press release. An entity not appearing in the Alert List should not be assumed to be authorised by the RBI.
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“The authorisation status of any person/ETP can be ascertained from the list of authorised persons and authorised ETPs, which are already made available in the RBI website," it said.
Further, the RBI reiterated that residents can undertake forex transactions only with authorised persons and for permitted purposes, in terms of the FEMA.
While permitted forex transactions can be executed electronically, they should be undertaken only on ETPs authorised for the purpose by the RBI or on recognised stock exchanges via the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE), BSE and Metropolitan Stock Exchange of India, it added.
The apex bank said it is continuously receiving references seeking clarification on the authorisation status of some ETPs. It has, therefore, been decided to place on the RBI website an Alert List of entities.
RBI said residents undertaking forex transactions for purposes other than those permitted under the FEMA or on ETPs not authorised by the RBI shall render themselves liable for legal action under the FEMA.
