Patanjali Ayurveda has approached state-run banks to help fund its Rs 4,350 crore acquisition of Ruchi Soya Industries NSE 1.96 %, said people with knowledge of the matter.
The company is looking to raise debt with a maturity of five years and above from State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Bank of Baroda, Union Bank and Jammu & Kashmir Bank, they said. The homegrown consumer goods company is tying up with the banks to raise more than Rs 3,700 crore while Rs 600 crore will be generated through internal accruals.
“The funding is in the final stages of negotiation and the interest rates will be finalised soon,” said one of the persons. “Patanjali had earlier approached several nonbanking channels but it backtracked after these investors sought high level of disclosures.”
Patanjali, SBI NSE 0.62 %, PNB NSE 0.98 %, Bank of Baroda, Union Bank and J&K Bank did not respond to queries.
Patanjali acquired Ruchi Soya in an insolvency auction held by lenders seeking to recover more than Rs 9,300 crore. Among financial creditors, SBI had the maximum exposure of Rs 1,800 crore, followed by Central Bank of India (Rs 816 crore) and PNB (Rs 743 crore).
Adani Wilmar, which emerged as the highest bidder in August last year after a longdrawn battle with Patanjali, had in December 2018 written to the resolution professional regarding significant delays in the insolvency process that led to the deterioration of Ruchi Soya’s assets.
With the acquisition of Ruchi Soya, Patanjali will become a key producer of soyabean oils and other products. The deal is expected to help Patanjali maintain its earlier growth momentum.
