The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has given its approval to Piramal Group for the takeover of Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd (DHFL), Ajay Piramal-led conglomerate said on Thursday. The lenders now require the approval of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).
The development comes just a month after the Committee of Creditors (CoC) of DHFL voted in favour of Piramal’s bid with 94 per cent votes and approved its resolution plan.
“We understand that the RBI has approved the DHFL resolution plan from Piramal Capital and Housing Finance, submitted by the CoC,” said a statement by Piramal Group.
A resolution plan in such a scenario requires a minimum of 66 per cent votes to be passed by lenders.
The other major contender for the debt-ridden NBFC was US-based Oaktree Capital which secured around 45 per cent of the votes, while Adani Capital was able to secure 18 per cent votes.
The total offer of Piramal was Rs 37,250 crore, compared to Rs 38,400 crore offered by Oaktree. However, Piramal had offered higher upfront cash payment.
The total dues of DHFL stand at around Rs 90,000 crore.
The two groups, Piramal and Oaktree, had been engaged in an intense bidding war to take charge of DHFL, which had collapsed under severe liquidity crunch.
Piramal, in its bid, has offered an additional amount in the resolution process to fixed deposit holders, over and above what the CoC offers them through the IBC resolution.