Coffee Day Enterprises seeks more time to submit quarterly earnings

After the demise of VG Siddhartha, the conglomerate is facing liquidity crunch owing to higher interest outgo towards servicing debt.

Coffee Day Enterprises on Wednesday sought more time from stock exchanges to submit its first and second quarter earnings of FY20 owing to non-completion of internal investigations. In August last year, the firm has assigned Ashok Kumar Malhotra, retired DIG of CBI to probe into the purported letter written by its founder chairman late V G Siddhartha. He was also assigned to scrutinise the books of accounts of the firm with the help of an accounting firm. “As the assignment is under progress and is likely to take few more weeks for completion, hence, there will be delay in submission of unaudited financial results (with the limited review by the auditor),” it said in an exchange filing.

Earlier, both exchanges had informed CDEL that delay in declaration of earnings beyond January 29, could lead to halting of trade in company's shares due to breach of listing regulations. 

The conglomerate, however, provided the unaudited second quarter earnings (July-September period) which showed that the company had posted a loss of Rs 154 crore as compared a profit of Rs 21 crore a year earlier. Revenues of the firm declined eight per cent (year on year) at Rs 843 crore by the end of September quarter. These financial numbers were prepared by the company and not vetted by company's statutory auditors.

After the demise of CDEL's founder chairman, VG Siddhartha last year, the conglomerate is facing liquidity crunch owing to higher interest outgo towards servicing debt. 

To deleverage its balance sheet, the company last week has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its brokerage business 'Way2Wealth Securities' to Shriram Ownership Trust. In September last year, the company entered into an agreement with private equity major Blackstone and realty firm Salarpuria Sattva Group to sell 'Global Village' tech park for Rs 2,700 crore. However, the deal is yet to be concluded pending some approval from creditors.