ZEE can withdraw its merger implementation application: NCLT
.webp)
The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has allowed ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL) to withdraw its application seeking directives for Sony Group Corp-owned Culver Max Entertainment and Bangla Entertainment to execute their composite scheme of arrangement, according to a report by The Economic Times.
ZEEL had initially filed the implementation application following the termination of the merger agreement by Culver Max and Bangla Entertainment on January 22, citing an alleged breach of the merger cooperation agreement (MCA).
Following this, Culver Max and Bangla Entertainment lodged applications with the NCLT contesting the validity of ZEEL’s application.
The termination effectively halted the multi-billion-dollar merger deal between Sony and Zee, which was formally agreed upon on December 21, 2021, after more than two years of negotiations, the report said.
In April, ZEEL announced its decision to withdraw the merger implementation application to focus on pursuing claims against Culver Max and Bangla Entertainment through the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) and other legal avenues. This move is aimed at enabling ZEEL to explore strategic growth opportunities and enhance shareholder value.
Sony’s Indian entities had initiated arbitration proceedings against ZEEL at the SIAC, seeking $90 million in termination fees, alleging breaches of the MCA in connection with the deal termination on January 22.
This triggered a significant decline in ZEEL’s stock price by 33 per cent to a 52-week low of Rs 152.5 on January 23, prompting the company to undertake corrective measures following four years of declining profits and subdued revenue growth.
The report quoted ZEEL chairman R Gopalan as saying, “The immediate priority for the company is to focus on performance and achieve its targeted goals for the future. We have reviewed the key steps taken by the management over the last few months that are result-oriented, and we believe that the company is well poised to chart a stronger growth trajectory.”
He further said, “Hence, after seeking an independent legal opinion, the Board has advised the management of the company to withdraw the implementation application filed before the Hon’ble NCLT. The Board remains focused on maximising shareholder value, strengthening the company’s claims in arbitration, and enabling the company to explore strategic opportunities.”
ZEEL has started a cost-cutting drive to achieve an 18–20 per cent Ebitda margin by FY26, which includes a workforce reduction of 15 per cent from its current staff count of 4,500, the report said.
Other Latest News
.webp)
India’s benchmark indices fell nearly a per cent on Friday in a topsy-turvy session to cap their worst weekly performance in more than two years.
A deepening conflict in West Asia triggered risk-off bets from global investors and raised the risk of a runup in oil prices.
.webp)
India’s foreign exchange reserves jumped by $12.6 billion to cross $700 billion for the first time after reporting a steady climb for seven straight weeks, according to the Reserve Bank (RBI).
The overall kitty swelled by $2.838 billion to touch $692.296 billion during the previous week.
.webp)
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament has decided to review the functioning of top regulatory authorities in the country and has called heads of Sebi and TRAI for deposition on October 24.
Top officials of the Ministry of Finance, (Department of Economic Affairs) and Ministry of Communications have also been asked to appear before the key parliamentary panel.
.webp)
At least 28 naxals killed so far in the encounter with Police in the Maad area on the Narayanpur-Dantewada border. A huge amount of automatic weapons were recovered. The gunfight broke out at around 1 pm in the forest between Thulthuli and Nendur villages in Abhujmaad on the Narayanpur-Dantewada inter-district border, when a joint team of security personnel was out on anti-Naxal operation, Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) Sundarraj P told PTI over the phone.
.webp)
Polling for all the 90 Assembly seats in Haryana began on Saturday morning amid tight security arrangements, officials said.
The fate of Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, Congress leaders Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Vinesh Phogat, besides the JJP's Dushyant Chautala and 1,027 other candidates, will be decided in the polls in which more than two crore people are eligible to vote.
.webp)
.webp)
.webp)
.webp)
.webp)
