Even as the debt resolution process of Reliance Capital (RCap) is in the final stages, there is uncertainty over the company’s life Insurance joint venture with Nippon Life of Japan.
While Hinduja-backed IndusInd’s debt resolution plan has been approved by the lenders and awaits NCLT nod, the fate of Nippon Life’s 49 per cent stake in Reliance Nippon Life Insurance Company (RNLIC) is not clear. That’s because the resolution plan envisages that all existing agreements, including shareholders agreement, will stand nullified.
Clause 4.12.2 of the Resolution Plan reads: “it is clarified that all the shareholders’ agreement, share purchase agreements, share sale agreements and any other agreement pertaining to or relating to governing the affairs of the corporate debtor and/or governing the inter-sale rights of the shareholders of the corporate debtor shall stand terminated without any recourse against the corporate debtor or the resolution applicant.”
According to industry experts, Nippon Life could take legal recourse to get clarity over its standing. “Nippon Life could take legal action for safeguarding its interest as a 49 per cent equity partner in the JV or it can sell its stake in the comany. The other option would be to enter into a fresh agreement with the Hindujas to retain their stake in the life insurance venture,” said an analyst.