In a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), USL said it had made a recommendation to the board of subsidiary United Spirits to consider the sale of the entire share capital of Whyte & Mackay.
Nearly six months after he put the stake sale process of Whyte & Mackay on the fast track to find a solution to United Spirits' high leverage, UB Group Chairman Vijay Mallya is understood to be nearing a deal to offload 49 per cent stake in the flagship subsidiary.
According to the The Times, the move is a part of a drive to cut UB Group's $4 billion (2.5 billion pounds) debt.
As an overnight producer of nearly 10 per cent of the world's Scotch whisky, Vijay Mallya has moved to a global liquor arena.
Ever since Diageo struck a deal to buy controlling stake in United Spirits Ltd, the two companies have pulled all stops to ensure the "dream combination" gets all the regulatory clearances.
Brewing billionaire Vijay Mallya's woes seem to be compounding. His flagship spirits arm, United Spirits Ltd (USL), is starting to mirror Kingfisher Airlines.
Mallya had bought the pedigree scotch major, based in Scotland, for $1.2 billion in 2007.
John Beard, a former chief executive of Bacardi Brown Forman, replaces Ashwin Malik, who has led the Glasgow-based company since its takeover.
To help UB raise above half the buyout cost of Rs 4,620 cr.
Vijay Mallya-owned Force India named 23-year-old Scot Paul di Resta as its test and reserve driver for the 2010 Formula One World Championship. Di Resta, who outshone his American opponent JR Hildebrand in the young driver test at Jerez in December, was unveiled on Tuesday at the Glasgow headquarters of Force India's principal sponsors Whyte & Mackay.
Mr Mallya's United Spirits, the third-largest spirits group in the world, acquires both a global footprint and a quality label.
Liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya-promoted United Spirits on Wednesday said it had acquired Scottish whiskey maker Whyte & Mackay for 595 million pounds (nearly Rs 4,819 crore).
This will be the largest M&A by an Indian firm, to be complete by January-end.
Liquor baron Vijay Mallya is mulling to divest around 49 per cent stake in United Spirits Ltd's UK-based wholly-owned subsidiary Whyte & Mackay (W&M), which it acquired for 595 million pounds in May 2007.
The Vijay Mallya-promoted UB group has started examining the books of the Scotland-based Whyte & Mackay as a precursor to acquiring the foreign company for the reported pound 550 million
United Breweries Group Chairman Vijay Mallya said on Friday his group was eyeing acquisition of a large Scottish whiskey company, with an enterprise value of around Rs 4,000 crore (Rs 40 billion).
He's also enjoying a new level of corporate respect.
While the enterprise value of 595 million may seem expensive for the acquisition of Whyte & Mackay by United Spirits, the fact remains that scotch is in short supply globally and there aren't too many companies up for sale.
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Diageo, the world's largest distiller, has been focusing on compliance at United Spirits Ltd (USL) after its acquisition of a controlling stake in India's largest spirits maker.
Brokerages expect better financials as management is determined to improve profitability.
USL is already contesting a Karnataka High Court order.
In a disclosure to the markets, United Spirits has said it is awaiting information from UB Holdings for determining the treatment in the company's accounts of the loan together with applicable interest accrued until March 31, 2014.
Move comes as huge provisions for bad loans push loss to Rs 4,488 crore.
RPG Enterprises Chairman Harsh Goenka thinks aloud about what Vijay Mallya could or should do to get out of the current mess.
While it will most certainly impact his personal credit record, it will also have repercussions for his other businesses and companies he is associated with.
Soon after acquiring strategic management control of Vijay Mallya's crown jewel, United Spirits, Diageo has swung into action, making up for years of lost time in trying to figure out the Indian market.
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