Zee Entertainment has cleared all dues to IndusInd Bank, ending the insolvency proceedings against the company. The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has accordingly disposed of the appeal filed by IndusInd Bank.
Media reports suggest that NCLAT has also set aside the order of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) that allowed Zee Entertainment to be admitted to insolvency. The tribunal has directed both the parties to pay the cost that the interim resolution professional incurred in the brief period where it was under the resolution process.
The NCLAT order was passed on July 1, 2023 and both the amount of money that Zee Entertainment paid to IndusInd Bank and the cost that the interim resolution professional incurred was not disclosed.
Back in March this year, Zee Entertainment and IndusInd Bank had reached a settlement wherein the media company made a partial payment of dues to IndusInd Bank, with the remainder to be paid before June 30. The quantum of the initial payment was not disclosed.
IndusInd Bank had filed an insolvency application against Zee Entertainment, alleging that another Essel group subsidiary Siti Networks, for which the media company was a guarantor, had defaulted in payments of dues worth Rs 83 crore.
Earlier, the same month, NCLAT, had stayed an order allowing the commencement of insolvency proceedings against Zee Entertainment. The tribunal had also directed the two parties to reach a settlement within a stipulated time frame.
The settlement between Zee Entertainment and IndusInd Bank is a major step forward for the proposed merger. The merger, which is still subject to regulatory approvals, would create a media giant with a combined market capitalization of over $10 billion.