DHFL to use Rs 500-cr proceeds from Aadhar Housing stake sale towards NCD payment

DHFL will use the Rs 500 crore it got from selling stake in subsidiary firm Aadhar Housing Finance Limited towards payment of bonds, sources said Tuesday.

The promoter of Aadhar Housing --Wadhawan Global Capital (WGC), DHFL, Kapil Wadhawan, Dheeraj Wadhawan and Aruna Wadhawan, who all formed part of promoter and promoter group of DHFL have completely exited Aadhar from June 10, 2019, for about Rs 2,200 crore.

"DHFL will use the proceeds of Rs 500 crore it got by selling its entire 9.15 per cent (23,01,090 shares) in Aadhar Housing to pay towards its obligation for pay-off for NCD obligations," sources said.

The sale/transfer of entire stake held by Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Limited (DHFL) in Aadhar Housing Finance Limited (Aadhar) to BCP Topco VII Pte Ltd, which is controlled by private equity funds managed by Blackstone was completed on Monday.

Crisis-ridden DHFL, which delayed on payments towards non-convertible debentures (NCDs) recently, had last week assured that it will meet all payment obligations.

Company is taking all necessary steps to meet repayments within the seven-day grace period and prevent any future default, it had said.

The delay in payment had lead to a ratings downgrade on its commercial papers (CPs) worth Rs 850 crore by agencies such as Crisil and ICRA.

DHFL has caught itself in the liquidity trap post the IL&FS crisis that hit the NBFC sector late September last year.

The Reserve Bank of India, on its policy outcome last Thursday also said it was closely monitoring the developments in the NBFC sector and will not hesitate to take measures to ensure financial stability.

Country's largest lender SBI too said it has been closely monitoring its exposure to the NBFC sector for the past 10 months and taking action as required.

DHFL share closed 0.50 per cent up at Rs 89.95 on BSE.