NEW DELHI: Lenders of cash-strapped Future Retail are the most worried lot with the Supreme Court’s ruling favouring Amazon in its long-running dispute with Kishore Biyani-led group on its merger deal with Reliance Limited.
As it is, the Future Group has been piling on more debt to keep operations running in the aftermath of the Covid-19 led lockdowns. There is a marked fear that these outstanding dues could now become “unsustainable”, said two people in the know on condition of anonymity, adding that only an out-of-court settlement can save the retail chain and its hundreds of employees.
“Banks are waiting for the money. All these months, they were hoping that Reliance will take over Future’s liabilities but now it seems that the Future Group companies, which have already defaulted on loans and other repayments, will face bankruptcy proceedings,” rued one of the persons.
Future Group on its part, however, said that there are remedies available in law, which it will exercise following the Supreme Court judgement in the arbitration award with Amazon. “The judgement addresses two limited points related to the enforceability of the Emergency Arbitrator’s order and not the merits of the disputes. FRL is advised that it has remedies available in law, which it will exercise. “FRL intends to pursue all available avenues to conclude the deal,” it said.