MUMBAI: The lenders of fraud-hit Sterling Biotech, a pharma firm that has been facing insolvency, on Friday decided to withdraw the resolution proceedings against the company. The banks have accepted Sandesara brothers’ one-time settlement offer of Rs 5,500 crore.
“The e-voting on the resolution put to vote at the 14th meeting of the CoC of the Company concluded on Thursday, 07th March 2019 at (11:30 p.m. IST). In this regard, please note the Committee of Creditors has approved the withdrawal of the CIRP of the Company with requisite majority,” the company said in a regulatory filing to BSE.
According to sources privy to the developments, 90 per cent lenders have accepted the one-time settlement offer. They have also decided to take 66 per cent haircut on debt exposure to the company.Credit facilities to the tune of Rs 8,100 crore availed by the group were declared “fraud account” by banks. Investigative agencies including Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) have been probing the case. Its promoters have already fled the country.
Last year, Sterling’s lenders led by Andhra Bank had moved National Company Law Tribunal against it.
The ED has taken the CBI FIR into cognizance. Multiple prosecution complaints or charge sheets have also been filed by it before a special court. It had also attached assets worth over `4,700 crore of the pharmaceutical firm in June last year.
In January this year, a Delhi court allowed the ED to go ahead with the process to extradition of four Sterling Biotech promoters who were suspected to be in Nigeria and Italy.However, post those orders, the Sandesara brothers offered one-time settlement to the lenders.
Booked for bank fraud
The CBI had booked Sterling Biotech, its directors Nitin Sandesara, Chetan Sandesara, Dipti, Rajbhushan Omprakash Dixit and Vilas Joshi, along with chartered accountants Hemant Hathi and Garg, and some unidentified persons, in connection with the alleged bank fraud.