‘Citibank took no action’

Before the current scam came to light, a senior citizen couple had alerted the bank about the mismanagement of funds in their account, which was handled by Shivraj Puri. Faizan Haider reports.

Before the current scam came to light, a senior citizen couple had alerted the bank about the mismanagement of funds in their account, which was handled by Shivraj Puri. According to the victims, the bank officials then directed them to Puri, who asked them not to tell senior bank officials about the higher interest he was offering.

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The couple has now filed a complaint with Citibank after discovering that Puri had invested their money in a brokerage firm. “Our account was handled by Shivraj Puri and he offered us 8.75% interest per annum. So, we deposited a huge amount; our account was to mature on December 20,” said 67-year-old Suresh Talwar.

Talwar’s first fixed deposit matured on March 19, which is when the couple visited the bank and was told by Puri to invest the amount again. “He told us that Citibank has come out with a new scheme specially meant for senior citizens, with an interest of 9.75% per annum,” Talwar added.

The couple then visited the bank several times but to no avail. “On December 15, Puri asked me to sign a paper. Later, we received a letter from the bank that our relationship manager has been changed,” he added.

“On December 27, when we met our new relationship manager, we were told that we have no investment with the bank.”