Future group promoter Kishore Biyani's stake fell consistently across group companies since December 2019 after American retail major Amazon infused funds in a Future group promoter entity and the group companies started showing signs of financial distress due to closure of stores due to Covid-19 pandemic. As lenders take Future group companies to the bankruptcy courts to recover their dues under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, the shareholders of Future group companies are staring at complete wipeout of their investments as secured lenders get top priority in any potential recovery, say lawyers. "The fate of all Future group shareholders is now sealed with them looking at a complete loss.
The one-time restructuring of loans will help every firm and prevent cost-cutting measures such as lay-offs.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) are likely to seek from the finance ministry a six-month extension of the date for complying with the amendments to the Prevention of Money-Laundering Act (PMLA), citing implementation challenges. Sources said FPIs, through their custodians, were planning to approach the ministry, highlighting key concerns and seeking more clarification. The ministry, through a notification on March 7, lowered the threshold for reporting ultimate beneficial ownership (UBO) for non-profit organisations and politically exposed persons to 10 per cent from 25 per cent.
The GoM is likely to submit an interim report to the Council on pruning the list of items that at present do not attract the levy.
Banks are in the process of getting a board-approved restructuring framework in line with the RBI's framework and eligibility defined by the central bank.
'The approach towards Mallya is not right because his unit could have been turned around earlier with additional funds from his side and the bank's side.'
Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) on Monday said its loss-making South Korean arm SsangYong Motor Company (SYMC) has filed for bankruptcy. The SYMC has filed an application for commencement of rehabilitation procedure with the Seoul Bankruptcy Court under the Debtor Rehabilitation and Bankruptcy Act of South Korea, M&M said in a regulatory filing. The troubled automaker has also applied for an autonomous restructuring support (ARS) programme which is a court designed process, it added.
Ratan Tata, the octogenarian chairman of Tata Trusts that have controlling stake in Tata Sons, separately said he was extremely disappointed over reports speculating a major revamp in the leadership structure at the group. "I would like to state that no leadership structural changes are on the anvil," Chandrasekaran said in a brief statement. The statement came in relation to a Bloomberg report that said Tata Sons was considering a "historic revamp of its leadership structure by creating a chief executive officer's role to help improve corporate governance."
Apple is hoping to assemble in India 25 per cent of all iPhones produced globally to reduce its heavy dependence on China.
This was the companies' highest loss in two years.
The major beneficiaries of loan recasting will be sub-Rs 500 crore corporate exposures and retail exposures, which were earlier expected to see the highest increase in NPAs in percentage terms.
The Centre is looking to continue maintaining an arms length in financial sector appointments.
Automobile dealers' body FADA has urged the government to formulate a task force to monitor the compensation structure being worked out by Ford India for its dealer partners across the country. In a letter to Heavy Industries Minister Mahendra Nath Pandey, FADA president Vinkesh Gulati also requested the government to instruct Ford India to keep the industry body in the loop regarding the compensation structure for the dealerships. "We humbly request your Ministry's intervention... Create a task force which takes day-to-day updates from Ford India to monitor the compensation plan for automobile dealers and dealership employees," Gulati said in the letter.
Converts part of fixed salary component into variable one
A strong performance by sectors including banking raised the profits of Indian companies by 28 per cent in the three months ended March 2022. The rate of growth is, however, lower than the 30 per cent seen in December. Growth in net sales was also lower than what was seen in the December quarter for the sample under consideration.
Gross bad loans of banks may rise from 6.9 per cent in September 2021 to 8.1-9.5 per cent by September 2022 if the Omicron variant strikes the economy hard, as per the financial stability report of the Reserve Bank released on Wednesday. The report also said that the rising stress level in the retail loan portfolio of banks -- the mainstay of bank credit for many years now -- was led by home loans, which grew in double-digits so far this fiscal. While asset quality improved, with gross non-performing assets (GNPA) and net NPA (NNPA) ratios declining to 6.9 and 2.3 per cent, respectively, in September 2021, the slippage ratio inched up during the same period as private sector banks showed a higher rate of deterioration in asset quality, as per the report.
The three options are - a one-time settlement, restructuring of loans and of course go to IBC.
Trends that added colour to workplace culture in 2022.
Unacademy is conducting another round of job cuts and laying off 350 employees or 10 per cent of its workforce of 3,500, as the SoftBank-backed edtech firm targets profitability and reduces costs, according to an internal note sent by Gaurav Munjal, co-founder and CEO of Unacademy group, to the staff. Munjal said the restructuring exercise would affect about 10 per cent of employees across the group. "I am deeply saddened to share that we will have to say goodbye to some of our extremely talented Unacademy employees," said Munjal in the letter addressed to employees and reviewed by Business Standard.
Damage from new shenanigans can be contained if regulators move quickly when something does not smell right, counsels Debashis Basu.
Public sector lender Bank of India has moved to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) seeking initiation of insolvency proceedings against Future Retail Ltd and a moratorium over the assets of the Kishore Biyani-led debt-ridden firm. Besides, Bank of India (BOI), the lead banker of a consortium of banks that lent money to Future Retail Ltd (FRL), also suggested the insolvency tribunal appoint Vijay Kumar V Iyer as the interim professional of the company. Meanwhile FRL, in a regulatory filing, said it has been served and received a copy of the petition and is in the "process of taking legal advice".
From the beginning of 2021 Wipro has moved on to a new organisational structure. Analyst tracking the company are now wondering if CEO Thierry Delaporte's attempt to bolster Wipro's presence in the BFSI (banking, financial services and insurance) space by acquiring Capco for $1.45 billion is a step taken too early. Though many agree that Capco as a target may be good, but Wipro, which has been the most aggressive player in acquiring firms compared to its Indian players, does not have much to show in terms of performance as it continues to lag peers.
Edtech unicorn Vedantu has laid off 424 employees, about 7 per cent of its workforce, according to a blog post shared by the Bengaluru-based firm. This comes as the focus in the edtech space has shifted to profitability, according to experts. The lay-off comes days after the company fired 200 contractual and full-time employees, at a time when offline schools and colleges are opening up and learning is evolving into a more nuanced blended delivery model with a mix of online and offline.
Power generating companies (gencos) that use imported coal to produce electricity, may find it difficult to switch on their idle units immediately in the wake of high fuel costs, several players have told Business Standard. Recently, the Union power ministry had invoked Section 11 of the Electricity Act mandating all imported coal-based plants to generate power at full capacity. However, some generating companies that use imported coal, argue that it is simply unviable for them to produce power when the price of coal in the international market is high, while the per-unit price of power has been capped at Rs 12 per unit on the domestic power exchange.
IL&FS group would resolve debt of Rs 55,000 crore by March 2022, the board of the crisis-hit company has stated in its affidavit filed before the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT). While updating the progress of the resolution progress, the IL&FS board, led by Uday Kotak, said Rs 55,000 crore debt would be resolved through asset monetisation, restructuring and insolvency proceeding initiatives. Some of this has already been completed while the rest is at different stages of resolution, it said in a brief snapshot on the progress made in the ongoing resolution process till December 7, 2021, and suggested estimates of progress to be made by March 2022.
The auditors also said that the company is in the process of monetising its assets and has submitted a draft resolution plan to the consortium of bankers for restructuring its borrowings and also there have been discussions for stake sale by the promoters to a strategic partner with further equity infusion.
Tata Motors on Monday said its subsidiary and Ford India have inked a pact with the Gujarat government to acquire FIPL's Sanand vehicle manufacturing plant. Tata Passenger Electric Mobility Ltd (TPEML) -- a subsidiary of Tata Motors -- and Ford India Pvt Ltd (FIPL) have today signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Gujarat government for the potential acquisition of FIPL's Sanand vehicle manufacturing facility, including land, buildings, vehicle manufacturing plant, machinery and equipment, Tata Motors said in a regulatory filing. The MoU also includes the transfer of all eligible employees of FIPL Sanand's vehicle manufacturing operations, subject to the signing of definitive agreements and receipt of relevant approvals, it added.
Banks will also consider requests from MSMEs for restructuring their stressed standard assets. So far, only 25 per cent of the around 1 million eligible MSMEs have taken benefit of the RBI's special dispensation.
The new definition under the Code of Wages, 2019, includes three components: basic pay, dearness allowance and retention payment.
Seeking to guard investor returns from excessive exchange rate movements, RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan on Thursday said a move towards an inflation target of 4 per cent will help contain the currency market volatility.
Unacademy may see a funding dry spell for at least next 12-18 months and even last till 24 months and will cut costs to weather the lean period, said the chief executive of the education technology unicorn that recently laid off more than 600 employees. "This is a test for all of us. We must learn to work under constraints and focus on profitability at all costs. We must survive the winter," said Unacademy's co-founder and CEO Gaurav Munjal in a letter to the employees. "Winter is here. We are looking at a time when the funding will dry up for at least 12-18 months.
Falling valuations, slowing funding rounds and faltering investor sentiment seem to have prompted many start-ups to lay off employees in a bid to conserve cash. The latest to do so is SoftBank-backed Cars24, a leading e-commerce platform for pre-owned vehicles, which has laid off over 600 staff, according to sources in the know. The move, they said, is aimed at conserving cash amid cautious investor sentiment and a slowdown in funding.
Loans for Indian airlines have dried up as banks have become cautious to lend to the sector.
After his failed misadventure in Kargil, Musharraf deposed the then Prime Minister Sharif in a bloodless coup in 1999 and ruled Pakistan from 1999 to 2008 in various positions.
When a Future Group official was contacted, he refused comment but industry insiders confirmed that the pull-out was on the cards because of the financial health of the company.
A sharp fall in the price of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies is another hard blow to the already sinking cryptocurrency market in India. Global and domestic prices have been on a downward trail since November last year when Bitcoin prices hit a peak of close to $68,000 in international markets. The recent past has seen a much sharper fall in the price of the leading cryptocurrency, Bitcoin.
While Indian IT has known what is coming and has a strategy ready to combat it, the same can't be said about the country and the government.
Recently, TPEM's first born electric concept, Avinya broke cover. The model promises a minimum range of 500 kilometres and advanced technology features, aimed at buyers in India and outside. TPEM, the newly formed entity may also consider a separate dedicated sales channel for the EVs with a distinctive corporate identity once the volumes reach a critical mass and throughput is large enough for the dealers to be profitable, said Chandra. Elaborating further on the hiring strategy he said, "We will hire from everywhere-wherever the talent of the required competency is available."
The $8.5 billion TVS Group received final approval for a family resettlement on February 4 from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). It is an arrangement that is noteworthy because unlike many other corporate settlements this one was sorted out amicably and without any open conflicts.
For the fiscal ended 2021, the group has made a loss of Rs 5,943 crore on sales of Rs 11,723 crore, a drop of 66 per cent over fiscal 2020. The group's total debt was up by 7 per cent to Rs 20,742 crore.
