Paul Merchants fined ₹20,000 by RBI for FEMA violations

Paul Merchants Ltd has received two speaking orders from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) dated October 1, 2026, imposing a total monetary penalty of ₹20,000 (₹10,000 for each order). The penalties were levied under Section 11(3) of the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999, for violations of RBI instructions. The Cochin branch was penalized for violating money changing activities rules by accepting UPI payments from two different accounts for a single retail sale transaction. The Tanda branch was fined for not obtaining a customer's signature on Form A2 under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme. The company states that, apart from the ₹20,000 penalty, it does not foresee any other material impact on its financial or operational activities.