Synergy Aerospace, the owner of Avianca Holdings, has submitted a late Expression of Interest (EoI) for Jet Airways (JAI, Mumbai International), The Economic Times has reported.

Although the Latin American holding missed the August 10 deadline, the resolution professional leading the bankruptcy proceedings, Ashish Chhawchharia, has indicated he will seek creditors' approval to consider the EoI.

Besides Synergy Aerospace, three other funds submitted proposals ahead of the deadline. However, Anil Agarwal's family trust, Volcan Investments, withdrew just a day after, while Panama-based investment firm Avantulo Group was disqualified from the bidding. As such, the only bidder in contention is a Russian fund, RA Creator.

The creditors are expected to meet to discuss Synergy's bid and extend a further INR100 million rupees (USD1.4 million) in interim funding on August 26, 2019.

Jet Airways' creditors have, to date, registered INR305.6 billion rupees (USD4.2 billion) in claims against the grounded airline. So far, INR125.6 billion rupees (USD1.7 billion) have been admitted in the ongoing bankruptcy proceedings.

Meanwhile, as creditors are looking for ways to salvage the airline, its founder and long-time owner Naresh Goyal has come under increasing scrutiny over his business dealings. The PTI newswire has reported that the Enforcement Directorate, the Indian economic law enforcement unit, alleged that Goyal diverted 20-30% of INR90 billion rupees (USD1.2 billion) in loans received by Jet Airways.

"[The investigation] indicates that Goyal structured various tax-evading schemes involving its domestic and foreign companies, thereby siphoning off huge amount in foreign jurisdictions through dubious or fictitious transactions," the ED said in a statement, indicating that Goyal could have been the ultimate beneficiary.

In particular, the ED alleges that Jet Airways paid inflated commissions to its wholly-owned subsidiary in Dubai, ostensibly as a part of aircraft leasing deals. The ED is also investigating the role of Isle of Man-based Tail Winds Corporation, a firm founded by Goyal in 1992.

Sources indicated that the ongoing probe could see Goyal indicted under anti-money-laundering laws.

As a part of the investigation, the ED searched 12 locations over the past weekend, including Goyal's residence and Jet Airways' headquarters. All transactions dating back to 2005 are now under scrutiny.