New Delhi, Mar 4 () Reliance Communications' Committee of Creditors is believed to have approved insolvency resolution plan that will fetch lenders Rs 23,000 crore by selling its assets to Reliance Jio and UVARCL.Under the plan, 38 lenders of RCom can recover over 70 per cent of their outstanding of Rs 33,000 crore secured debt, an industry source aware of the development told ."The committee of creditors (COC) has approved the resolution plans of RCOM and its subsidiaries RTL and RITL with an absolute majority of 100 per cent by the lenders at the COC meeting, as against the mandatory requirement of 66 per cent," the source said.Lenders submitted claims of around Rs 49,000 crore in August of which Rs 33,000 crore estimated to be secured debt.Reliance Jio and UV Asset Reconstruction Company Limited were the highest bidders for RCOM assets at the CoC meeting held on January 13, 2019.Jio had placed bid of around Rs 4,700 crore for the tower and fiber assets of Reliance Infratel Ltd (RITL), while UVARCL has made an offer of Rs 14,000 crore for spectrum, real estate assets, enterprise and datacenter businesses, held by RCom and Reliance Telecom Ltd.In addition, the creditors will clawback the priority payments of Rs 4,300 crore made to Chinese (Rs 1,300 crore) and Indian lenders (Rs 3,000 crore)."Loans of Chinese lenders will reduce by nearly 65 per cent to around Rs 4,000 crore from around Rs 12,000 crore. This is the highest-ever recovery of dues by financial creditors in the telecom sector, which has seen the exit or shut down of 11 out of 12 telcos since 2012," the source claimed.According to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India, the recovery to lenders in the case of Bhushan Steel and Essar Steel were 63 per cent and 60 per cent, respectively."The bidders have committed to pay 30 per cent of the proceeds of around Rs 7,500 crore within 90 days," the source said.The resolution professional has to submit the plan before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on Thursday. PRS BAL

'RCom creditors approve Rs 23,000 cr asset sale plan to Jio, UVARCL'

New Delhi, Feb 17 () The Committee of Creditors of Reliance Communications on February 24 will put to a vote asset bids received from UV Asset Reconstruction Company and Reliance Jio from which lenders are expected to recover around Rs 23,000 crore, according to sources privy to the development. UV Asset Reconstruction Company is learnt to have placed a bid of around Rs 14,700 crore while Reliance Jio has made an offer of Rs 4,700 crore for tower and fibre assets of Reliance Infratel Ltd. There will also be claw back of Rs 4,300 crore of priority payments made to Chinese and Indian creditors. "With this resolution plan, the 38 lenders of RCom will recover over 70 per cent of their outstanding of about Rs 33,000 crore. In the case of Bhushan Steel and Essar Steel, the recovery to lenders was 63 per cent and 60 per cent, respectively, as per the IBBI website," the source said. "Loans of Chinese lenders to reduce by nearly 65 per cent i.e. by Rs 8,000 crore from about Rs 12,000 crore to around Rs 4,000 crore," a banking source aware of the process said. Jio placed bid for tower and fibre assets of Reliance Infratel Ltd. (RITL) and UVARC for assets of RCom and Reliance Telecom Ltd. RCom's secured debt is estimated to be around Rs 33,000 crore. Lenders submitted claims of around Rs 49,000 crore in August. RCom has put all of its assets on sale which include spectrum holding of 122 MHz, tower business, optical fibre network and data centres. "The bidders have committed to pay 30 per cent of the proceeds of around Rs 7,500 crore within 90 days," the source said. As per the NCLT order, the CoC had to complete the entire process by January 10 but it sought extension in deadline. The Resolution Professional (RP), Deloitte, is expected to file resolution plan with the NCLT Mumbai on March 5. RCom in the past had tried to sell assets to various companies, including Reliance Jio, to clear debt but the deals did not crystallise. Reliance Jio cancelled agreement to buy RCom assets, including spectrum, as it did not want to bear the past liabilities of the debt-ridden firm. Later, the insolvency proceedings against RCom started on a plea filed by Swedish telecom gear maker Ericsson after the company failed to clear its dues. PRS MRMR

RCom CoC to vote on Rs 23,000 cr resolution plans on Feb 24

New Delhi, Dec 22 () LIC-controlled IDBI Bank expected to come out of the Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) framework in the last quarter of the current fiscal with the support of capital infusion and recovery from large IBC cases.
According to sources, some of the restrictions with regard to lending by the bank have been eased recently.
With money coming from resolution on Essar Steel and expected flow from resolution of Bhushan Power and Steel and Alok Industries, sources said the bank is likely to be posting profit during the third quarter and the subsequent quarter.
The bank has already come below net NPA threshold of 6 per cent, one of the three parameters for triggering PCA framework. The net NPA of the bank reduced to below 6 per cent in the second quarter ended September 2019.
Recently, Parliament approved Rs 9,300 crore capital infusion in IDBI Bank. The department of financial services got an additional Rs 4,557 crore for infusion into IDBI Bank through recap bonds for their share of 47.11 per cent in IDBI Bank. State-owned LIC, which is the promoter of the debt-ridden lender with 51 per cent stake, will pump in an additional Rs 4,743 crore to improve the bank's capital position.
Wtih this kind of capital infusion coupled with write back from the recoveries from large NPA cases, the bank is expected to come out from the weak bank watch list by the end of the current fiscal, sources said.
The PCA framework kicks in when banks breach any of the three key regulatory trigger points namely capital to risk weighted assets ratio, net non-performing assets (NPA) and return on assets (RoA).
Earlier this month, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharam said the recapitalisation was done by the government by infusing Rs 21,157 crore into IDBI Bank since 2015 after we came back to power and LIC infused Rs 21,624 crore.
"So both put together have given Rs 42,781 crore to the bank. This has help reduce the net NPAs from a peak of 17.3 per cent in September, 2018 to 5.97 per cent in September, 2019. It has come below RBI's 6 per cent net NPA threshold level," she had said.
Earlier this year, the RBI removed five banks - Bank of India, Bank of Maharashtra, Oriental Bank of Commerce, Allahabad Bank and Corporation Bank - from the PCA framework in two phases after capital support from the government that resulted in improvement in their financial parameters.
The capital infusion helped these lenders meet requisite capital thresholds and reduced their net NPA levels to below 6 per cent. DP MKJ

IDBI Bank likely to be out of PCA framework in fourth quarter

New Delhi, Dec 8 () Emphasising that the insolvency law provides a new lifeline to save a company from premature closure, IBBI Chairperson M S Sahoo has said the board will continue with efforts to develop best practices and ensure that regulations are "grounded on realities".
 More than three years after implementation of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), which has brought in "significant behavioural changes among the stakeholders," he said there are early evidences of the Code delivering better outcomes than the erstwhile similar frameworks.
 The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) is a key institution in the insolvency ecosystem. The Code provides for time-bound and market-linked Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP).
 The Code has undergone various amendments and the recent Supreme Court verdict in Essar Steel case has provided clarity about various aspects, including the roles of resolution professional, resolution applicant and Committee of Creditors (CoC).
 When asked about the key takeaways of three years, Sahoo said the Code has re-defined the debtor-creditor relationship and brought in significant behavioural changes among the stakeholders.
 "The life of a company is as precious as that of an individual. The Code provides a new lifeline to save the company from premature closure. It is the duty of the insolvency ecosystem and the stakeholders, particularly creditors, to save every company, wherever there is economic value," he told in a recent interview.
 As many as 10,860 cases under the Code were pending before the National Company Law Tribunal at the end of September 2019, as per data provided by the corporate affairs ministry to the Rajya Sabha.
 About the priorities of the IBBI, Sahoo said the regulator would continue its engagement with the stakeholders to ensure that insolvency reform remains a reform by, for and of the stakeholders.
 "It will continue to engage with academia, industry, professionals and other stakeholders to create awareness about it, build their capacity to use the Code for insolvency resolution and liquidation, develop best practices, promote research, and to ensure that the regulations are grounded on realities," he noted.
 Further, Sahoo said the IBBI would keep a close watch on the developments and take note of lessons.
 "It would modify the regulatory framework to address the challenges and to plug the loopholes, if any, within the confines of the Code, and build the capacity of the IPs (Insolvency Professionals) and other constituents to take the insolvency reforms to the next level," he added. RAM RAM BAL MR
MR

IBBI will ensure regulations are 'grounded on realities', says Sahoo

<ul><li>There is a job role that will thrive during bad times — that of <keyword id="6397536" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="resolution-professionals">resolution professionals</keyword> (RPs). </li><li><keyword id="4057332" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Insolvency-professionals">Insolvency professionals</keyword> (IPs) as they are also called help distressed and bankrupt companies liquidate assets. </li><li>Watch an interview with India’s bankruptcy board chairman where he talks about insolvency laws and the need to hire resolution professionals. </li></ul>Economic slowdown leads to job losses, but it there is a job that will thrive during bad times — that of resolution professionals (RPs). A large number of companies are being sucked into bankruptcy as they are unable to pay loans, but the number of RPs in India are few and far between. Insolvency professionals (IPs) as they are also called help distressed and bankrupt companies liquidate assets. Two years ago, India introduced a new <keyword id="6375770" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="bankruptcy-law">bankruptcy law</keyword> — the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) — to assist banks to resolve bad debt. “India had as many as had around 700 insolvency professionals, as of 2017,” said Mamta Binani, former president of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India. In the last two years, the number of cases landing into bankruptcy court has increased by leaps and bounds. “We have about 2,500 cases, 10,000 matters or so who are people applied, filed an application with the adjudicating authority, and before admission those are withdrawn,” MS Sahoo, the Chairman of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/policy/economy/news/exclusive-interview-with-ms-sahoo-the-insolvency-and-bankruptcy-board-chairman/articleshow/72069548.cms"> told </a>Business Insider India. Added to that, India also needs resolution professionals to wade through the complexity of new laws that are still taking shape in India. So far, there have been two corrections to the evolving code. “It made two course corrections earlier and this is the third round. The law now says that the process has to be completed in 330 days mandatorily including the time spent on liquidation,” Sahoo added. The success of a good liquidation plan lies in the time taken to resolve it. As time passes, the value of assets also decrease leading to loss of value. As India plans to navigate through tough regulations, it also needed professionals who can ease the transition, and quickly. The country has tried to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india-badly-needs-bankruptcy-experts-and-this-course-could-be-your-ticket-to-a-hot-new-career/articleshow/67553029.cms">groom insolvency professionals</a> with its various training programmes for insolvency associates. The Insolvency and Banking Board of India (IBBI) created ways that allow Chartered Accountants, Company Secretaries and Advocates to become IPs. However, it may be a challenging career to take on. For one, a resolution professional has to deal with a multitude of issues, aspects, audits and even legal wrangles that are common. Recently, a case where <keyword id="47654" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="ArcelorMittal">ArcelorMittal</keyword> tried to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/policy/news/essar-steel-case-bankruptcy-board-chairman-ms-sahoo-exclusive-interview/articleshow/72068971.cms">take over Essar Steel</a> which was facing bankruptcy ended in the Supreme Court. Yet, the salaries of Interim Resolution Professionals and Resolution Professionals are also attractive. The actual compensation varies as per the complexity of cases and ranges from ₹ ₹50,000 to over ₹1.5 lakh a month. Watch an interview with India’s bankruptcy board chairman where he talks about insolvency laws and the need to hire resolution professionals. 
 
 
 
 <div type="Video" msid="72073026" hostid="261" title="“Nowhere in the world do bankruptcy cases have a 330-day deadline,” says bankruptcy board chief MS Sahoo" thumbUrl="https://denmark.timesinternet.in/cmslite/api/app/images.jpg?msid=72073026"></div>

​Resolution professionals can make as much as ₹1.5 lakh a month and are in demand

New Delhi, Dec 18 () Yoga guru <keyword id="6355107" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Baba-Ramdev">Baba Ramdev</keyword>'s <keyword id="6406649" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Patanjali-Ayurved">Patanjali Ayurved</keyword> on Wednesday made its first big acquisition when it paid Rs 4,350 crore to take over soya food brand Nutrela-maker Ruchi Soya through an insolvency process. The acquisition will help Patanjali acquire edible oil plants as also soyabean oil brands such as Mahakosh and Ruchi Gold. Sources said Patanjali settled Rs 4,350 crore of dues Ruchi Soya had towards financial creditors by infusing Rs 1,100 crore equity and arranging another Rs 3,250 crore via debt.
 The acquisition of Ruchi Soya by Patanjali Ayurveda has been completed, sources said, adding that the amount has been transferred to an escrow account and disbursals to financial creditors are in process.
 When contacted, Patanjali Ayurveda spokesperson S K Tijarewala said: "We have completed all the formalities and the entire amount of debt and equity has been deposited. Now, officially Ruchi Soya has become Patanjali group firm."
 In December 2017, the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) ordered start of insolvency proceedings against Ruchi Soya on application of Standard Chartered Bank and DBS Bank. Shailendra Ajmera, part of consultancy firm EY, was appointed as resolution professional (RP).
 Ruchi Soya is the second big insolvency case to be completed this week. World's largest steel maker ArcelorMittal together with Japan's Nippon Steel on Monday completed the acquisition of Essar Steel for Rs 42,000 crore.
 Both the companies were taken to insolvency court over unpaid dues of lenders. Their bankruptcy proceedings had been pending for two years. Their resolution will help lenders such as State Bank of India clear a good part of bad loans, sources said.
 Japyee Infratech, which built the country's first road expressway that is wide enough to land fighter jets during emergency, is also headed towards resolution with lenders on Tuesday accepting the offer of state-owned NBCC Ltd. The deal is slated to close in coming months.
 In April 2019, Patanjali Ayurved had received approval of financial creditors to acquire Ruchi Soya. The NCLT gave its nod to the resolution plan in early September.
 But later, the Singapore-based DBS Bank became a dissenting creditor and approached the NCLAT challenging the distribution of proceeds from the bid submitted by Patanjali Ayurveda.
 Earlier, Ruchi Soya had informed in a regulatory filing that resolution applicant Patanjali group will infuse Rs 204.75 crore as equity and Rs 3,233.36 crore as debt.
 The amount will be infused in a special purpose vehicle 'Patanjali Consortium Adhigrahan Pvt Ltd', which will be later amalgamated with Ruchi Soya.
 Another Rs 900 crore would be infused by the Patanjali group through subscription of non-convertible debentures and preference shares in the SPV. It will also provide credit guarantee of nearly Rs 12 crore.
 Out of the Rs 4,350 crore offered by Patanjali group, Rs 4,235 crore would be utilised to pay creditors while Rs 115 crore would be used for capital expenditure and working capital requirements of Ruchi Soya.
 As per the filing, Rs 4,053.19 crore would be paid to secured financial creditors, Rs 40 crore to unsecured financial creditors, Rs 90 crore to operational creditors, Rs 25 crore to clear statutory dues, Rs 14.92 crore to workmen/employees and Rs 11.89 crore to provide counter bank guarantee.
 Patanjali won the bid to acquire Ruchi Soya after Adani Wilmar, which sells edible oil under the Fortune brand, withdrew from the race citing significant delays in resolution process that led to deterioration of assets.
 Patanjali Ayurved had approached NCLT challenging the decision of Ruchi Soya's lenders to approve Adani Wilmar's takeover bid. Patanjali group had come second in the bidding process. MJH ANZ ABM

Patanjali Ayurved completes acquisition of bankrupt Ruchi Soya for ₹4,350 crore

Mumbai, Dec 17 () Noted banker Uday Kotak on Tuesday said the country's financial system is currently in a Darwinian mode as only the fittest lenders are able to survive.
 The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Kotak Mahindra Bank also that historically, whenever there has been a problem with a private sector lender, it has been merged with a state-run bank.
"India is in massive Darwinian mode of what I call as the survival of the fittest. 
"Sector after sector has seen that it is going to be more consolidated than ever before. Consolidation in the Indian economy is happening more out of mortality and less out of combinations," Kotak said.
 He also noted that historically, whenever there has been a problem with a private sector lender, it has been merged with a state-run bank.
According to him, the government has to "rework" the Financial Resolution Deposit Insurance (FRDI) Bill since an exit route is essential for troubled lenders.
 FRDI Bill, which had raised concerns over protection for depositors, has lapsed and the government is yet to introduce a new bill.
 "As you are allowing entry in banking, we should be thinking more about exit policy. And one of the earlier bill that was planned earlier was the FRDI Bill. We need to rework on that," Kotak said, speaking at the Times Network organised India Economic Conclave here.
 The comments come at a time when multiple lenders, especially non-banks and also cooperatives like PMC Bank are sailing through choppy waters, which has highlighted the need for a legislation to take care of exits by financial sector participants.
 Kotak also welcomed rules introduced under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) wherein troubled DHFL has been referred for resolution.
 Regarding infra-lender IL&amp;FS, whose over RS 94,600-crore debt resolution process he heads, Kotak reiterated the company is confident of recovering over 50 per cent of its dues.
 He said the biggest challenge in the IL&amp;FS resolution was the distribution mechanism, which has been overcome after the Supreme Court judgement in the Essar Steel case.
 Kotak said there has been a complex web of over 340 companies in the IL&amp;FS group created over two decades which resulted in a lot of time taken by its new board.
 He said the time has come to "dramatically increase" the flow of domestic savings going into risk averse assets like fixed deposits and gold, into risk capital which can help the economy better.
 Further, Kotak said the government should choose a set of six core state-run lenders, and mark out three others where its stake would go down below 50 per cent through sales in the market and have the remaining three run as "public private partnerships". AA RAM

Indian financial system in Darwinian mode, only fittest lenders survive: Uday Kotak

<ul><li>Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth fell below 6.5%, which is lower than the trend rate of 7%.</li><li>BJP promised to turn India into the third largest economy by 2030</li><li>BJP manifesto says that they intend to turn into a $5 trillion economy by 2025</li></ul>Prime Minister Narendra Modi is yet to announce his new cabinet. But the Indian industry has already prepared a wishlist of requirements from the new government. And few see any hurdles to bold reforms, thanks to the spectacular mandate.Modi might have inherited a white elephant and has a lot of work to do, and there are a few years before Indian economy escapes <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/beyond-india-latest-gdp-data-the-real-cues-about-the-economy/articleshow/68179264.cms">its current cyclical downturn</a>. Added to that, Modi has to deliver on his big promises. His <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/Nearly-half-of-Narendra-Modis-1-4-trillion-new-infrastructure-promise-may-be-already-approved-projects/Existing-promises/slideshow/68795802.cms">manifesto aspired</a> to turn India into the third-largest economy by 2030, a $5 trillion economy by 2025, and to double farmers’ incomes by 2022. Faster reformsIn the second half of the current financial year, Gross Domestic Produce (GDP) growth fell below 6.5%, as per CRISIL. This fell from the 7.7% growth that it has seen last year.What is more worrying is that consumption demand, which was the bulwark of the economy, has weakened and private investment is yet to show signs of a pickup. According to A C Nielsen, the FMCG sector is expected to grow at 11-12%, two percent lower than expected, <a href="https://www.cnbctv18.com/retail/rural-slump-to-slow-down-fmcg-growth-to-11-12-in-2019-report-2989011.htm">in the current year</a>. To make sure that the economy recovers quickly, the industry wants Modi to add quickly. They want the government to stimulate the manufacturing sector and improve the outlook on private investment.“Bite the bullet in the first year itself to reap rewards later: take long-pending hard decisions in the first year itself. Create fiscal space for infra spending, privatisation, asset monetisation and generally unshackle funding in the economy,” said a report by Fitch Ratings.Majority effect“With the strength of this majority, the government can take bold and swift steps to further its promises of reducing corruption, increasing ease of business, and ensuring a simpler taxation regime," said G. Murlidhar, MD &amp; CEO, Kotak Life Insurance.The introduction of the goods and services tax (GST) and the new bankruptcy law gave Modi the bragging rights at the end of his first term. But those five years were not without their share of chinks. “Even though, in my personal view, the GST introduction was far from smooth and the law is complicated. Still, the introduction of GST was a big and necessary step to turn into a single market,” Alastair Newton, Co-founder &amp; Director, Alavan Business Advisory, told Business Insider.With a second term and a bold majority at hand, the industry expects the government to work towards land and labour reform, and solve the power sector logjam.“Another area of potential reforms is to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of government administration, and the legal and judiciary system. This would allow the government to solidify reforms of its first term, for instance by further enlarging the tax base and improving the credit culture,” said Thomas Rookmaaker, Director at Fitch Ratings’ Asia-Pacific Sovereigns. Burden of banksThe non-performing assets of banks or basically bad credit has amounted to as much as Rs 10.3 trillion at commercial banks. Added to that, a large number of high profile debtors like Essar Steel, Bhushan Steel and Reliance Communications have been referred to National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) by bankruptcy courts after they failed to repay their debts. Estimates say that the IBC (Indian Bankruptcy Code) has addressed cases worth Rs 3 trillion <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Companies/HivcqyYSmVjf6hZDIvY2KM/NCLT-helps-recover-Rs-80k-crore-in-2018-Kitty-may-cross-Rs.html">since December </a>2016. However, the delay in solving these cases are not helping banks, which are losing money over delays. The new government should help clear bottlenecks and empower the IBC to be able to ease bank’s problem. Establishing tougher rules and easing credit inflow to newer enterprises is yet another challenge that Modi will have to face, to hasten and sustain the country’s economy.

Quick, bold and decisive reforms on Indian industry’s wishlist to Modi

2018 proved to be a record year in India’s <keyword id="35603" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="mergers">mergers</keyword> and acquisitions space. Led by <keyword id="80487" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="walmart">Walmart</keyword>’s $16 billion purchase of a majority stake in homegrown e-commerce behemoth <keyword id="6354742" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Flipkart">Flipkart</keyword>, deal volumes reached an all-time high of <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/2018-was-a-big-year-for-mergers-and-acquisitions-in-india-here-are-the-top-deals/articleshow/67127132.cms">$125 billion</a> for the year, twice the amount seen in 2017. However, it was only one of the many <keyword id="6391790" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="deals">deals</keyword> struck in the year. There are many reasons why dealmakers are active in India, according to <keyword id="145332" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sonjoy-Chatterjee">Sonjoy Chatterjee</keyword>, the chairman of <keyword id="6361649" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Goldman-Sachs">Goldman Sachs</keyword>’ Indian business. Size matters Firstly, India’s market dynamics call for consolidation. “Local companies are consolidating because they need capital and scale to run their businesses”, said Chatterjee. It’s getting harder and harder for smaller firms to compete against large multinationals, which is why inorganic growth is being pursued. In addition, higher competition is forcing companies to merge, especially in the telecom sector, as seen in the merger of Idea and Vodafone, in order to boost capital expenditure while keeping debt burdens manageable. “14 companies have been winnowed down to three, as one of India’s largest conglomerates, Reliance Industries, has set new market benchmarks for product and pricing,” Chatterjee remarked. Stressed out The problem of debt is not limited to telecom. Many companies have also been sent to the cleaners by the new Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code. “Recent changes to India’s bankruptcy law are forcing more companies that can’t repay their debts into the bankruptcy process”, Chatterjee said. This is resulting in an auctioning of assets and acquisitions of bankrupt companies, most notably in the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/indias-steel-industry-is-set-for-a-shakeup-after-arcelormittal-finally-emerges-as-the-winning-bidder-for-essar-steel/articleshow/66316447.cms">steel sector</a>. Old promoters have been ousted and that process is likely to continue as a huge pile of unpaid loans is still largely unresolved. Changing models As the smaller companies crumbled under the weight of competition, larger companies are looking to strengthen their portfolio by buying out peers. In December 2018, Hindustan Unilever, the Indian subsidiary of consumer goods giant Unilever, which is doubling down on its consumer health business through the acquisition of GlaxoSmithKline’s (GSK) key nutrition brands like Horlicks and Boost. Family-owned businesses shift strategy The new generation of leaders in family-owned businesses are changing tack and looking to enter completely new verticals. “With rising foreign investment flows leading to good valuations, several families are looking to exit their businesses and deploy capital in completely new areas” Chatterjee said. This can clearly be seen in the case of<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/sale-one-of-indias-oldest-battery-brands-eveready-for-500-million/articleshow/67482195.cms"> Eveready</a>, a 114-year old company, the founding family of which is reportedly planning to sell their stake in. Even Ujjwal Munjal, the scion of the Hero Group which sells motorcycles, has commenced plans to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/ces-2019-munjal-grandson-from-the-hero-family-is-selling-ai-devices/articleshow/67469653.cms">sell AI devices</a> through an electronics subsidiary of the company. Sellers market Thirdly, Chatterjee feels that foreign investors have played a big part in the boom. Despite the <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Money/XvrfxeOgowt1zR38CXyDIK/FIIs-withdraw-nearly-Rs-1-trillion-from-Indian-capital-marke.html">volatility </a>in foreign portfolio investments, more and more institutional investors and private equity firms are shifting focus to India, especially its technology space which is coming into its own and has attracted the world’s largest tech firms, from Apple to Tencent. India’s growth trajectory significantly outweighs that of lagging China - India is expected to grow by 7.3% this year compared to China’s 6.2% - but also because of <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Politics/GwXhAdltCo1TCbRTAm5z0H/India-up-23-places-in-ease-of-doing-business-rankings.html">its improvement</a> in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Index. These factors will likely persist through 2019 and keep deal street buzzing. Deal makers may stay wary of political uncertainties until the outcome of the election. However, given that most deals, especially the large ones, are driven by a long-term perspective, there is hope going forward too. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/2018-was-a-big-year-for-mergers-and-acquisitions-in-india-here-are-the-top-deals/articleshow/67127132.cms">2018 was a big year for mergers and acquisitions in India. Here are the top deals</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/indias-steel-industry-is-set-for-a-shakeup-after-arcelormittal-finally-emerges-as-the-winning-bidder-for-essar-steel/articleshow/66316447.cms">India’s steel industry is set for a shakeup after ArcelorMittal finally emerges as the winning bidder for Essar Steel</a>

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'RCom creditors approve Rs 23,000 cr asset sale plan to Jio, UVARCL'

PTI

RCom CoC to vote on Rs 23,000 cr resolution plans on Feb 24

PTI

IDBI Bank likely to be out of PCA framework in fourth quarter

PTI

IBBI will ensure regulations are 'grounded on realities', says Sahoo

PTI

Resolution professionals can make as much as ₹1.5 lakh a month and are in demand

Prerna Sindwani

Patanjali Ayurved completes acquisition of bankrupt Ruchi Soya for ₹4,350 crore

PTI

Indian financial system in Darwinian mode, only fittest lenders survive: Uday Kotak

PTI

Quick, bold and decisive reforms on Indian industry’s wishlist to Modi

Katya Naidu

Goldman Sachs’s India Chairman explains the country’s M&A boom

Dilsher Dhillon

You Searched For "Essar Steel case" and got 9 results

'RCom creditors approve Rs 23,000 cr asset sale plan to Jio, UVARCL'

PTI

RCom CoC to vote on Rs 23,000 cr resolution plans on Feb 24

PTI

IDBI Bank likely to be out of PCA framework in fourth quarter

PTI

IBBI will ensure regulations are 'grounded on realities', says Sahoo

PTI

​Resolution professionals can make as much as ₹1.5 lakh a month and are in demand

Prerna Sindwani

Patanjali Ayurved completes acquisition of bankrupt Ruchi Soya for ₹4,350 crore

PTI

Indian financial system in Darwinian mode, only fittest lenders survive: Uday Kotak

PTI

Quick, bold and decisive reforms on Indian industry’s wishlist to Modi

Katya Naidu

Goldman Sachs’s India Chairman explains the country’s M&A boom

Dilsher Dhillon

Resolution professionals can make as much as ₹1.5 lakh a month and are in demand