ED probes $1.5 million foreign funding trail across six countries over alleged meddling in India's domestic affairs

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is investigating two foreign entities over suspected financial transactions allegedly linked to attempts to interfere in India's domestic affairs, including the transfer of $1 million to a UK-based firm with links to India, The Times of India reported.

The agency has identified TCC Digital Markets Ltd, registered in Saint Kitts and Nevis, as the source of funds that eventually reached entities and individuals in India through a series of layered transactions spanning multiple jurisdictions, including Germany, Dubai, Lithuania, Canada, the Caribbean nation and the UK.

Investigators have traced the original source of the $1 million to the Dr Matthias Karl Vogt Trust in Germany. According to a senior official familiar with the investigation, the trust initially transferred the money to Lithuania-based XBase Digital UAB to circumvent German law before it was routed through other entities and eventually reached a UK-based firm.


The initial investigation also uncovered an undated letter from Dr Matthias Vogt stating that the payment had been made in digital currency.

Intelligence inputs gathered by the agency suggest that the digital assets may have originated from hawala transactions in Dubai before being transferred to the Lithuanian entity and subsequently routed to the UK.

The UK-based firm received the $1 million in its Airwallex (UK) Ltd account between February and March 2026. The funds moved through multiple entities and financial channels, including one registered in Lithuania, before being transferred as a grant by TCC Digital Markets Ltd, according to sources familiar with the probe.

The Saint Kitts and Nevis-registered entity reportedly sent the money in two instalments of £67,006 and £71,746 to the UK firm. The funds were subsequently routed to their intended recipients in India, the sources said.

Saint Kitts and Nevis, a Caribbean island nation, is known as a tax haven and has been associated with concerns over the use of offshore jurisdictions for laundering illicit proceeds.

The ED has also identified a separate transaction involving Canada-registered ZBase Digital Inc, which transferred $500,000 to the same UK firm's Airwallex account in February 2026.

Indian agencies are seeking to verify the transaction details with Airwallex, according to the report.

The two alleged transactions together amount to $1.5 million. The investigation is examining the flow of funds across jurisdictions and the possible involvement of foreign entities in India's domestic affairs.