Reliance Industries (RIL) has agreed to extend operational support to Future Retail to prevent its collapse while its Rs24,713-crore deal to buy the cash-strapped retailer’s assets awaits approval from a company law tribunal.
The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), which was due to announce its ruling on Tuesday, adjourned the case until 15 March.
The MukeshAmbani-led company has also extended an internal deadline for completion of the purchase by six months to accommodate for delays caused by a legal battle between Future Group and Amazon.com Inc. Firms usually set aside 3-9 months, depending on the transaction’s complexity, to secure regulatory approvals.
Some of Future Retail’s lease agreements for stores have, however, been transferred to Reliance to ease the burden on the troubled retailer and avoid defaults.
Future Group has 1,500 Big Bazaar and fbb stores in India, with around 70,000 people working in them.
Apart from transferring rental agreements in the name of RIL group entities, integration of the workplaces of Reliance Retail and Future Group has also begun
