Even as investors bet on a resurgence for medium-sized Indian companies after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s return to power, one of the country’s top mid-cap fund manager advises caution, Bloomberg News reported. This group of stocks won’t get an immediate lift from Modi’s victory as it isn’t immune to the slowdown in the economy and the lingering shadow-bank crisis, said Vinit Sambre, who oversees $1.6 billion in two mid- and small-cap funds at DSP Investment Managers in Mumbai.

Eros International Media Ltd. plunged Friday, bringing its two-day slump to 32% after Care Ratings downgraded the company’s creditworthiness, citing delays or likely default in servicing of bank loans, Bloomberg News reported. The filmmaker’s Indian-listed stock suffered a rapid erosion in market value this week after Care cut the long-term bank facilities rating 10 notches to D, or default from BBB-, a move that brought back memories of the steep downgrades last year at Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services by Moody’s Corp.’s local unit.

The Reserve Bank of India diluted its guidelines on stressed assets and has now mandated banks to undertake a review of a borrower’s accounts within 30 days of default, according to a circular issued on Friday, Reuters reported. A circular issued in February last year required banks to initiate a resolution process as soon as a default took place. Banks unable to agree upon a resolution plan with the defaulter within 180 days were mandated to force them into a time-bound insolvency process.

Shares of mortgage lender Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd (DHFL) fell as much as 18% on Thursday, their biggest intraday fall since February, a day after two leading ratings agencies downgraded the company to their lowest on the lender missing payments on bonds due this week, Reuters reported. ICRA cut its rating on the company’s paper to D from A4, while Crisil downgraded to ‘CRISIL D’ from ‘CRISIL A4+’, implying that the company was in default or expected to be in default soon.

Two major Indian lenders slumped in the bond market after their credit ratings were cut to junk by Fitch Ratings, in the latest sign of concerns about the nation’s banks that are battling the world’s worst bad-loan ratio, Bloomberg News reported. Fitch lowered its long-term issuer default ratings on ICICI Bank Ltd. and Axis Bank Ltd. to BB+ from BBB- late on Monday. Certain dollar bonds from ICICI slumped the most in more than a year, while ones from Axis Bank fell the most in over six months on Tuesday.

Prepackaged insolvency resolution, allowing creditors and shareholders with a pre-negotiated corporate reorganisation plan to approach NCLT, may be taken forward by the government as a key route in the time to come, Business Standard reported. Sources said "this will aid the existing framework and cut costs and the time taken during the resolution process. This is part of a consultation process under the law panel of the IBC identifying issues impacting its efficacy and make recommendations.

India’s shadow banks are being forced to go overseas more for money as local lenders balk at extending funds, flagging strains in a key industry for an economy that’s already sputtering, Bloomberg News reported. The country’s non-banking financial companies have raised more than $2 billion of overseas bonds and loans in 2019, a record compared with the same period in previous years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The lifeline is welcome, even as it underscores a scramble after a string of defaults by peer IL&FS Group last year made investors wary.

Global mining conglomerate Vedanta Resources said on Friday it was seeking international arbitration over Zambia’s appointment of a provisional liquidator to run the company’s Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) business, Reuters reported. Vedanta said on Friday its executives were unable to visit its KCM operation and engage with local management, in a setback to efforts to ease tensions amid a legal battle with Africa’s second-biggest copper producer. The Zambian government has accused KCM of breaching its operating license. Legal proceedings have been adjourned until June 4.

Creditors of Jaypee Infratech Thursday decided to put on vote NBCC's bid to acquire the debt-laden realty firm even as the state-owned firm did not dilute certain conditions in its offer including relief from future tax liabilities, sources said, Yahoo! News reported. The voting under the insolvency process, run by Jaypee Infratech's Interim Resolution Professional (IRP) Anuj Jain, will start from Friday and continue till June 10, they added. As many as 13 banks and over 23,000 home buyers have voting rights in the committee of creditors (CoC). Buyers have nearly 60 per cent votes.

India probably lost its spot as the fastest growing major economy to China in the January-March quarter as a chill in domestic and global consumer demand hit manufacturers and service providers, Reuters reported. The slowing economy didn’t stop voters giving Prime Minister Narendra Modi a landslide victory in an election concluded earlier this month. But it puts an onus on him to deliver reforms that can truly unlock growth, which had waxed and waned during his first five years in office.