Videocon insolvency: Lenders make U-turn, want fresh bids

After getting rapped for accepting Vedanta group's bid that would give just 5 per cent of their outstanding loans, lenders to Videocon Industries on Monday approached the insolvency appellate tribunal NCLAT seeking fresh bids for the debt-laden consumer durable firm.

Billionaire Anil Agarwal's Twin-Star Technologies had offered Rs 2,962 crore to takeover Videocon Industries, which was 4.15 per cent of the admitted claims of Rs 64,838.63 crore of lenders.

SBI, the leading lender of Videocon Industries, has approached the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) requesting for a rebidding of the 13 companies of the debt-ridden group, on account of strong observations against Rs 2,962 crore takeover bid by Anil Agarwal's Twin Star Technologies.

SBI, on behalf of assenting creditors of Videocon, which represents 94.98 per cent voting had filed an application before the NCLAT requesting to remand back the matter to the Committee of Creditors (CoC) for reconsideration and allow to conduct a fresh process of inviting bids.

A two-member NCLAT bench headed by Justice Jarat Kumar Jain and Kanthi Narahari, Member, has posted the matter for further hearings on September 27.

SBI, a lead financial creditor in the CoC with an 18.05 per cent voting share, has said that the Mumbai Bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), while approving Rs 2,962 crore bid by Twin-Star Technologies has made certain observations over the low-resolution plan and hair-cut suffered by various class of stakeholders.

Even the NCLAT, while granting an interim stay over the resolution plan and NCLT approval, had said that there are "exceptional facts" into the matter.

Earlier on June 9, the Mumbai bench of the NCLT had approved Rs 2,962 crore takeover bid by Twin Star Technologies for the 13 companies of the debt-ridden group.

However, the NCLT order was stayed by the appellate tribunal on July 19 over the petitions filed by two dissatisfied creditors of the Videocon Group - Bank of Maharashtra and IFCI Ltd and had directed to maintain "status quo ante”.

Filing a reply affidavit before the NCLAT, SBI said assertions have been made in the present appeals by the dissenting financial creditors about non-disclosure of their respective share of the liquidation value, which has resulted in them not being able to take a proper and prudent decision.

"The observations of the Adjudicating Authority (NCLT) and the Appellate Tribunal necessitated a reconsideration by the Assenting Financial Creditors of their decision to accept the haircut of 95 per cent,” it said.

In the affidavit filed through the AGM at Mumbai-based SBI Stressed Assets Management Branch said the Assenting Financial Creditors, majority of which are public sector banks and financial institutions dealing with public money, have to give serious consideration and weightage to the observations of NCLT and NCLAT and propose to "reconsider its decision in larger public interest".

This is to ensure that public money is secured in the best possible manner.

According to the lender, the resolution plan is not feasible since the same is not consistent with the observations made by the NCLT and the NCLAT.

"The appellate tribunal may be pleased to remand the matter back to the COC for its reconsideration and in view of the observations regarding the value offered by the successful resolution applicant, resulting into 95 per cent of the haircut, the appellate tribunal may be pleased to inter-alia allow the COC and the resolution professional to conduct a fresh process of inviting fresh expressions of interest and resolution plans from all interested resolution applicants or take a decision to liquidate the corporate debtors as per the provisions of the Code," it said.

Videocon Industries and its 12 group companies had a total admitted claims of Rs 64,838.63 crore.

Earlier, in its 47-page-long judgement, NCLT while approving Twin Star Technologies' Rs 2,962.02 crore-bid had observed creditors of debt-ridden Videocon Industries Ltd will be taking nearly 96 per cent haircut on their loans and the bidder is "paying almost nothing”.

The NCLT had observed that the resolution plan is giving 99.28 per cent to the operational creditors, which it sarcastically hinted to be as a “Hair cut or Tonsure, Total Shave".

The NCLAT has also admitted the petition filed by former Videocon group chairman and managing director Venugopal Dhoot challenging the NCLT order approving Rs 2,962 crore takeover bid for its 13 group companies by Twin Star Technologies.

Photograph: Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters