A group of banks involved in discussions to provide approximately $250 million each as part of a syndicated loan totaling around $3.5 billion to refinance debt related to the Adani Group’s acquisition of Ambuja Cements Ltd. has received internal approval for the deal, reported Bloomberg News quoting insiders familiar with the matter.
Three banks, namely Barclays Plc, Deutsche Bank AG, and Standard Chartered Plc, are among the participants in a larger consortium engaged in negotiations for this syndicated loan to support billionaire Gautam Adani’s conglomerate, added the report.
Some financial institutions were considering lending $400 million each, potentially making it one of Asia’s largest loan deals this year, as previously reported by Bloomberg based on sources.
However, no new information has been provided regarding the status of this larger group of banks.
This development signifies progress in the Adani Group’s efforts to address the allegations made by US short-seller Hindenburg Research earlier this year, which were vehemently denied by Adani officials. These allegations had a negative impact on the stocks and bonds of group companies, leading to stalled negotiations with global banks for debt refinancing, as reported by Bloomberg in February.
In 2022, Adani acquired the Indian assets of Switzerland’s Holcim Ltd. as part of its diversification strategy, expanding beyond its core businesses in ports, power plants, and coal mines into sectors such as data centers, airports, digital services, retail, and media.
The report noted that the transaction has not yet been finalised, and the terms are subject to potential changes.
Source: India Today