Morning buzz: Zee drags Sony to tribunal after merger deal talks collapse, ICRA forecasts India's bank credit growth to be 15 percent for FY24, and more

Zee Entertainment has now approached the NCLT and the Singapore International Arbitration Centre against Sony, for termination of the merger. Image: Shutterstock

Zee drags Sony to tribunal after merger deal talks collapse

The fallout of the Sony-Zee merger collapse continues to be felt. Zee Entertainment has now approached the NCLT and the Singapore International Arbitration Centre against Sony, for termination of the merger. The two parties had been in talks for a month after the deadline lapse in December but failed to arrive at a consensus. Zee, in its filing, has denied the charge of not meeting merger conditions and refuted Sony's termination fee.
(Business Standard, Economic Times, Moneycontrol, Reuters India)

ICRA forecasts India's bank credit growth to be 15 percent for FY24

Ratings agency ICRA has revised upwards the banks’ credit growth forecast to 15 percent from an earlier 13 percent, estimating an incremental growth of Rs 20.4-20.9 lakh crore. This is the highest ever level that India’s bank credit would have touched. Most financial institutions and research houses have projected India to remain the fastest growing major economy in the world in the current year and the next, according to a Reuters poll of economists.
(Hindu Businessline)

Bain Capital to invest $10 billion in India over the next five years

Bain Capital says it is on track to invest upto $10 billion in India over the next 3 to 5 years, according to its Asia chief David Gross-Loh. Bain has already pumped $2 billion over the last 12 to 18 months into India. The focus of investors has been shifting to India at a time when global economies continue to struggle for growth and market returns are not as positive as predicted earlier.
(Economic Times)

Collections from Vodafone Idea improving: Indus Towers

Indus Towers, one of the largest telecom infrastructure companies, says that the dues from cash-strapped Vodafone Idea have been improving. Reports are that Vodafone Idea, one of Indus’s largest customers paid it Rs 300 crore in the December-ended quarter. As on December-end 2023, Vodafone Idea owes Indus Towers about Rs 5,700 crore, for which the tower company has made a provision for doubtful debts.
(Financial Express)