Essel Group secures lenders' consent, gets time till Sept 30 to avoid default

As per the consent, the lenders have agreed that there will not be any event of default declared till September 30, 2019.

 Mumbai: Multi-faceted business conglomerate Essel Group’s management on Sunday secured a formal consent with lenders, which are having a pledge on shares held by the promoters in ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. and Dish TV India Ltd, to not declare default till September 30, 2019, due to the movement in the stock price.The consent was achieved during the second round of a detailed meeting held between Essel Group Promoters and lending entities.

"As per the consent, the lenders have agreed that there will not be any event of default declared till September 30, 2019, due to the movement in the stock price of Essel Group’s mentioned listed corporate entities. This consent provides the required amount of time for the Group’s management, to complete the strategic sale process of its key assets without any compromise on the value." said the Group.

"During the meeting, the management of Essel Group once again reassured the lending entities, that within the mentioned time frame a complete resolution will be achieved, leveraging the stake sale process. The lenders have showcased complete co-operation and have agreed to support Essel Group’s management, together as one team," it added.

Chairman of Essel Group, Subhash Chandra, speaking on this development said, "I am glad that the formal consent with the lenders has been achieved. For us, while their assurance given last week itself was more than enough, the formal consent seals and justifies their belief and trust in us and the intrinsic value of our assets."
"We are now positively focused on completing the strategic sale process, with the esteemed support of our lenders," he added.

Last week, the Group issued a statement stating that " We have “successfully arrived at an understanding with lenders which are having a pledge on shares held by the promoters.”

“In view of the sensitive situation triggered due to the steep fall of the stock price of ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd and Dish TV Ltd, a detailed meeting of the Essel Group promoters with the lending entities comprising of mutual funds, NBFCs and banks was conducted,” said the Group in a statement.