Action on NBFCs to be based on RBI's June 7 norms on stressed assets: SBI

Lenders will take a call on their exposure to the stressed NBFC sector in light of the Reserve Bank's June 7 circular which has laid guidelines for resolution of bad loans, SBI Chairman Rajnish Kumar said Friday.

Kumar, who met finance ministry officials here, also said there was no discussion on crisis-hit DHFL in the meeting.

DHFL had an outstanding debt of around Rs 1 trillion at the end of December. Of that, 38 per cent are bank loans, with SBI having the highest exposure.

DHFL is among the housing finance companies that were hit by the liquidity crisis following the series of defaults by IL&FS Group companies since August.

 

"Resolution of any stressed assets either of NBFC or any other sector will be as per the June 7 guidelines of the RBI," Kumar told reporters here.

After the Supreme Court quashed RBI's guidelines on stressed assets, released in February 2018, the central bank on June 7 came out with revised norms which gave more room to lenders for resolution of bad loans.

DHFL earlier this week said it has defaulted on 60 per cent of Rs 375-crore commercial papers due for repayments on June 25, while the rest of the payment has been made.

"Out of the aggregate amount of Rs 375 crore, Rs 150 crore i.e. 40 per cent has been paid on a proportionate basis and the balance amount of Rs 225 crore shall be paid in the next couple of days," it had said.

Speaking on the resolution of the now-grounded Jet Airways, Kumar said whoever meets the eligibility criteria can submit an expression of interest under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.

Earlier this month, the Mumbai bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) admitted an insolvency petition against Jet Airways and directed the resolution professional for the airline to try to finish the process within three months.

Earlier Friday, Jet Airways Employee Consortium and AdiGroup said they would jointly bid for acquiring up to 75 per cent stake in Jet Airways through the NCLT process.

The airline owes Rs 8,500 crore to banks and around Rs 25,000 crore in arrears to vendors, lessors and employees.