The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is investigating funding from the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and George Soros’s Economic Development Fund, with connections to three Bengaluru-based companies. These firms received significant funding amid ongoing scrutiny of their foreign financial transactions.
USAID, which has faced criticism from the Trump administration for allegedly promoting a “left, liberal, and woke” agenda internationally, is now under investigation by the ED in relation to an ongoing probe into hedge fund manager George Soros.
The ED has been investigating three Bengaluru-based companies for potential violations of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) concerning a receipt of Rs 25 crore from the Soros Economic Development Fund. During its investigation, the ED discovered that one of these companies, ASAR Social Impact Advisors, also received Rs 8 crore from USAID as foreign inward remittance in the 2022-23 period.
The three companies received Soros’s funds between 2021 and 2024. Sources indicated that ASAR explained the USAID funding was a reimbursement for services provided to a Delhi-based public policy think tank, the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), which, according to its website, focuses on “understanding global challenges and their implications for India’s development.” ASAR officials were unable to clarify the specific services rendered to CEEW or how USAID became involved in the transaction. Both ASAR and CEEW have not responded to queries regarding the ED investigation.
In addition to ASAR, sources have identified two other Bengaluru-based companies—Rootbridge Services Pvt Ltd and Rootbridge Academy Ltd—as recipients of funding from the Soros Economic Development Fund (SEDF), the impact investment arm of Open Society Foundations, one of the many entities founded by George Soros.
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