IndusInd International Holdings Limited (IIHL) aims to complete the acquisition of Reliance Capital (RCap) by January 2025. Ashok Hinduja, the chairman of IIHL, said they have secured all the necessary regulatory approvals to close the `9,861-crore deal.
The final approval from the department for promotion of industry and internal trade (DPIIT) has come, paving the way for completing the required formalities. “IIHL has received all regulatory approvals to complete this transaction. We have also completed the fund-raising process,” Hinduja said.
“The administrator and the committee of creditors (CoC) will now begin the delisting process, which is expected to be completed in the next few weeks, followed by the completion of the transaction by the end of January 2025,’’ he said.
RCap had announced in February that its shares would be delisted from stock exchanges as part of the resolution plan. The NCLT Mumbai on February 27 had approved IIHL’s resolution plan. IIHL had appointed 360 One and Barclays for raising the funds. The total cost of acquisition of RCap is `9,861 crore, including `200 crore paid initially over and above the bid amount to bolster RCap solvency.
The company has already paid `2,750 crore, which is lying with the CoC.
An additional amount by way of debt of `3,000 crore has already been raised and kept in a separate account, pending closure of certain activities. The debt of `4,300 crore is ready for disbursement upon delisting of RCap shares from the stock exchanges.
The administrator and the CoC have to complete certain procedural formalities such as delisting of equity and non convertible debentures (NCD), creation of trust for transfer of excluded assets, capital reduction, release of all charges on assets of RCap. These steps are expected to take around four-to-six weeks.
IIHL, as per the NCLT resolution plan, would be free to use the Reliance Capital brand name for three years. However, the IIHL management is keen to integrate the business under the IndusInd International Holding banner and initiate a rebranding exercise at the earliest.
“Board reconstitution will take place, with discussions involving senior management. Any necessary changes at the second-tier level will be addressed, with a focus on value creation and professionalism,” said Hinduja. “The current management team, including the MD and CEO, has been performing well, and there are no plans to change them. These entities have survived and generated profits over the last 3-4 years, indicating effective performance and value creation,’’ he added.
IIHL is targeting a valuation of $50 billion by 2030 with this acquisition, reinforcing its commitment to growth and value creation in the financial sector. The current valuation of IIHL stands at $15 billion as in September 2024.
In November 2021, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) superseded the board of Reliance Capital on governance issues and payment defaults by the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group company. The apex bank had appointed Nageswara Rao Y as the administrator, who invited bids in February 2022 to take over the company.