In this week's wrapup, we talk about the Essar Steel Saga, power struggles in Andhra Pradesh, Dr. Manmohan Singh’s scathing article, the sorry state of affairs at DHFL and Zee Entertainment.
The Essar Steel Saga
On Monday, we wanted to figure out why the Essar Steel Saga took so long to conclude and we went all the way back to 2016, when the Government of India passed the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).
After the IBCs introduction, The Reserve Bank of India immediately identified companies that had failed to pay their lenders, and Essar Steel featured prominently in that list. Soon enough, SBI and Standard Chartered bank dragged Essar Steel to bankruptcy court and the saga formally commenced. What most people did not realise was that it would take another 800 days to close. So what took so long?
Well, you are one click away from finding out.
Power Struggle in Andhra Pradesh
On Tuesday, we talked about the power war brewing in Andhra Pradesh.
It all began when the Chief Minister of AP decided he wanted to have a second look at Power Purchase Agreements signed by his predecessor. He said that the former CM had agreed to buy power at ridiculously high prices to favor corrupt individuals, and as a result, had landed the Government’s finances in a soup. He thought he could fix the problem by cancelling old agreements.
However, the Central Government was definitely not pleased with these developments. Why? Find out by reading this article.
The Manmohan Singh prescription
On Wednesday, we spoke about Dr. Manmohan Singh’s opinion piece, where he lamented about the state of India’s economy, and told the Government exactly where they were falling short. And on our part, we simplified the 1200 word article for you. You’re welcome.
We also spoke about Flipkart’s foray into the online grocery market through its new entity- Farmermart. While Flipkart has considerable support from Walmart, cracking the grocery supply chain is no easy task. So how is Flipkart planning on competing with the likes of Big Basket and Grofers
If you want to find out go ahead and click right here.
Game over for DHFL?
On Thursday, we spoke about the RBI’s decision to send housing finance company DHFL to bankruptcy court.
Like other NBFCs, DHFL was running an asset-liability mismatch. This means they were issuing long term loans based on short-term borrowings. But as the IL&FS Crisis began to unfold, many lenders simply refused to refinance their loans, and that was the death knell for DHFL
Confused? We recommend reading this article for an in-depth explanation.
How the Billionaire media baron lost his empire?
On Friday, we talked about how Subhash Chandra’s Essel Group is now poised to lose control of its most prized possession, Zee Entertainment.
The tale began when the Essel Group borrowed large sums of money to finance infrastructure projects, putting up Zee’s shares as collateral. When Essel defaulted on payments, lenders began selling these shares in the open market. As the supply suddenly increased, the stock price crashed.
What happened next was outright crazy and if you want to the inside scoop, read this article right here.
Also, listen, we need to get the word out. There are so many people out there who should probably be following all this so that they can lead the discourse shaping India’s future. We need people to be better informed and we think our stories are as easy as it gets. So if you agree with us go ahead and share this story on WhatsApp or tweet this.
