India

An apex court order giving the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) discretion over admission of insolvency cases even when default is proven has shaken bankers and lawyers, the Economic Times of India reported. They said that the ruling could deflate an already delayed process under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) and will most likely be used by unscrupulous promoters to argue against the admission of cases, potentially denting the potency of the dedicated recovery mechanism.

State-owned SBI has filed an insolvency petition against the country's largest sugar firm Bajaj Hindusthan Sugar Ltd, the Economic Times of India reported. SBI as a financial creditor has filed the plea before the Allahabad bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). In a regulatory filing, Bajaj Hindusthan Ltd informed that "we understand that State Bank of India, financial creditor through its advocate has initiated Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process of Bajaj Hindusthan Sugar Ltd." The petition has been filed under Section 7 of Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code 2016.

The Supreme Court has set aside the ruling of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) rejecting Asset Reconstruction Co (India) Ltd’s claim in Tulip Star Hotels’ insolvency case, the Economic Times of India reported. The appellate tribunal had accepted the hotel operator’s claim that the ARC filed its case against the company under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) after the limitation period of three years from the date of declaring the asset as non-performing.

India’s anti-money laundering agency has frozen assets worth $46.4 million from the local entity of Vauld for facilitating “crime-derived” proceeds from predatory lending firms in the latest headache for the crypto exchange that filed for protection from creditors last month, TechCrunch reported.

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has admitted Mumbai-based Topworth Urja & Metals under the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) and appointed Alok Kailash Saksena as an interim resolution professional for the company, the Economic Times of India reported. State-owned lender Bank of Baroda had approached the bankruptcy court in 2018 against Abhay Lodha- promoted Topworth Urja & Metals after it defaulted on its dues of about ₹ 218 crore. "The application made by the financial creditor is complete in all respects as required by law.

Lenders led by Bank of India have appointed BDO India to conduct a forensic audit of Future Retail, which is facing insolvency proceedings, the Economic Times of India reported. Kishore Biyani-led Future Retail had attempted to stave off bankruptcy by selling its companies to Reliance Industries' retail unit. Creditors did not approve the deal and the company was admitted to the National Company Law Tribunal for insolvency proceedings after it defaulted on ₹3,495 crore debt.

Private lenders IDFC First Bank and Yes Bank and state-owned Indian Bank have put their loans to SpiceJet Ltd in the high-risk category, the latest setback for the airline, Reuters reported. The lenders are concerned about SpiceJet's cash flows and have held discussions seeking assurances from the Indian budget carrier as it is behind on payments to some aircraft lessors, the sources said. The discussion comes as SpiceJet's approved fleet was halved for eight weeks this summer by regulators due to safety snags and as lessors have filed formal applications to de-register four planes.

India’s trade deficit ballooned to a record high in July, as elevated commodity prices and a weak rupee inflated the country’s import bill, Bloomberg News reported. The gap between exports and imports widened to $31.02 billion in July, from $26.18 billion in June, B.V.R Subrahmanyam, India’s trade secretary, told reporters at a briefing in New Delhi Tuesday, citing preliminary data. The trade deficit in June was a record before the latest numbers were released. Imports jumped 43.59% in July from a year ago, while exports dropped 0.76%.

The bankruptcy court on Thursday allowed a petition to withdraw the insolvency resolution process against Sahara Hospitality, after the company and its operational creditor agreed to settle their dispute, the Economic Times of India reported. Mumbai-based Sahara Hospitality, the owner of Hotel Sahara Star and part of Subrata Roy’s Sahara India Pariwar, was admitted under the corporate insolvency resolution process (CIRP) after operational creditor Delta Electro Mechanical filed a petition claiming a default of over Rs 50 crore by the company.