KOCHI: The demonetisation drive has forced hawala operators to find new ways to turn black money into white, especially in the Gulf region. The traders in Dubai have indeed found a new method too.
The modus operandi: An NRI gives 3,500 dirhams to a hawala agent. The former gets Rs 1.5 lakh in India, albeit in the scrapped Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. The present exchange rate of 3500 dirhams is around Rs 64,000, doubling the profit. As the amount is below Rs 2.5 lakh, no queries will be made while depositing the amount.
“One of my friends was approached by an agent for such an exchange. The traders said they would deliver the amount in old currency denominations at home. There are many such traders in Dubai and across the Gulf region,” said John, who works in Dubai.
Hawala is a money transfer system widely used in Arab countries and South Asia. The money is paid to an agent who instructs an associate in the relevant country to pay it to the final recipient. In hawala transactions, money enters the hawala system in local currency and leaves as foreign currency.
Underscoring such a possibility, Akshay Agarwal, MD, Acumen Capital Market India, said these transactions could not be traced.
“People with unaccounted money are making all efforts to get it accounted. Hawala agents will find a way to deal with the situation. I think large-scale transactions will not take place till December 30. After that there may be a change mainly due to the presence of Rs 2,000 currency. Large denominations generally fuel hawala deals,” he said.