Ares SSG, a leading Asia-Pacific alternative asset manager, announced today that certain of its funds have completed the acquisition of all underlying assets of Altico Capital India Limited, an NBFC which used to provide loans and financing to India's real estate sector before experiencing financial difficulties in 2019, according to a press release. The acquisition marks the first resolution of a defaulting NBFC outside India's Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) and represents Ares SSG's single largest investment in India to date.
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India
India’s combined federal and states’ budget gap in the current fiscal year will reach 12.7% on increased healthcare spending and a collapse in revenues amid the pandemic, according to an analysis by the country’s largest commercial bank, Bloomberg News reported. State Bank of India said in a report published Wednesday that there was a sharp increase in debt in the year to March 31 as states had to borrow more given their lack of resources, with the average fiscal deficit across 13 states reaching 4.5% of gross domestic product.
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Bankruptcy courts have sent more than 1,100 companies for liquidation under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) ever since the code came into force in 2017, Telangana Today reported. Citing data from the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI), the Minister of State for Corporate Affairs, Anurag Thakur told the Lok Sabha that a total of 1,126 companies have been ordered for liquidation as of December 31, 2020.
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The Supreme Court on Monday held that the NCLT has jurisdiction to adjudicate disputes, which arises solely or relates to the insolvency of a corporate debtor. The top court, however, cautioned the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) and its appellate tribunal (NCLAT) to ensure that they do not usurp the legitimate jurisdiction of other courts, tribunals and forum, when the dispute is not related to the insolvency of the Corporate Debtor, the Economic Times of India reported.
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Bankers are worried that there will be a flood of applications at the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) after the government suspension of insolvency proceedings ends on March 25 of this year. Some resolution cases like Future Retail could get derailed if operational creditors initiate insolvency proceedings. A section of bankers feels that the government can use the leeway under the amendment and extend the suspension up to June 2021. As part of its Cover relief measures, the government had issued on June 25 a notification to suspend insolvency proceedings by six months.
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Dr. Agarwal Healthcare Limited has evinced interest in buying Vasan Healthcare Pvt. Ltd., the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Chennai, was informed, while seeking extension of time for the insolvency resolution process, The Hindu reported. In 2017, the NCLT had ordered the commencement of insolvency proceedings against Vasan Healthcare, in a petition filed by Alcon Laboratories (India) Pvt. Ltd., one of its suppliers. Later the proceedings were stayed by a single judge of the Madras High Court.
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Billionaire Lakshmi Mittal is revisiting a plan to set up a steel plant in the mineral-rich eastern Indian state of Odisha with an investment of $6.9 billion, after abandoning an earlier attempt to build a mill in the province, Bloomberg News reported. ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India Ltd. has signed an accord to build a steel plant in the state with an investment of 500 billion rupees ($6.9 billion), Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s office said in a Twitter post. Federal Steel Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said on Twitter earlier this week that he had “good conversations” with Mittal.
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Provisions of the Indian insolvency law that protect a corporate debtor from other proceedings will also cover dishonoured cheques, the supreme court ruled, taking a view contrary to two earlier high court verdicts, Bloomberg Quint reported. Moratorium allowed under Section 14 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code will apply to proceedings under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act used to recover an amount for a bounce cheque, the top court ruled. The top court, however, said the protection will be available only to the corporate debtor and not its management personnel.
After plunging into one of the worst recessions of any major economy, India is showing signs of a modest comeback, the New York Times reported. But that recovery is uneven, and the country is still struggling to find ways to sustain growth. Its service sector is vulnerable, and the vast informal economy — which employs farmhands, day laborers, rickshaw drivers and many millions of others — remains weak as well.
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DHFL on Thursday said it has received no objection from the Reserve Bank and has filed an application with NCLT for submission of the resolution plan of Piramal Capital & Housing Finance, the Economic Times reported. Earlier this week, DHFL had announced Piramal group's resolution plan getting approval from the RBI.