(Reuters) – Commodity trader Trafigura said on Thursday it booked a $577 million charge in the first half of 2023, after discovering that some nickel cargoes it received were found not to contain the metal, calling it a “systematic fraud.”.
Singapore-based Trafigura said the fraud was committed by a group of companies connected to and controlled by Indian businessman Prateek Gupta, including TMT Metals and companies owned by Gupta’s UD Trading Group.
UD Trading Group did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Trafigura said that it had commenced legal proceedings against Gupta and the companies involved.
(Reporting by Juby Babu in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta and Rashmi Aich)
