Nazara seeks to buy Smaaash under IBC
Gaming firm Nazara Technologies seeks to acquire Smaaash Entertainment Pvt. Ltd through the insolvency and bankruptcy process, two people aware of the matter said.
As part of the corporate insolvency resolution process, Nazara will submit its resolution plan by 9 March to revive the bankrupt firm. Last year, Adlabs Entertainment (Malpani Group), Manikchand Group, FZE, Tech Connect Services, Capri Global, Jindal Enterprises and iLabs India Special Situation Fund had also evinced interest in the insolvent firm.
According to one of the two people, the bid amount cannot be made public and is confidential under the code.
Smaaash Entertainment was admitted by the Mumbai bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in May 2022 following a default of ₹292.4 crore to Edelweiss Asset Reconstruction Co. Subsequently, Bhrugesh Amin was appointed as the resolution professional to oversee its dayto-day operations. Amin, representing BDO Restructuring Advisory LLP, had admitted claims worth ₹426.26 crore from Edelweiss ARC, Mabella Investment Advisors, Sidbi and Yes Bank.
The company incurred losses during the covid-led 18-month shutdown, but bounced back once the restrictions were lifted.
“The timelines are generally provided in the expression of interest which may be modified by the RP at the request of the Committee of Creditors (CoC). However, the same shall be subject to a maximum limit of 330 days. Typically, from 9 March, the remaining process till it reaches the authority for approval, may take up to 30 days. Then, before the NCLT it will depend on various factors like number of objections to the plan,” said Ashish Pyasi, partner , Aendri Legal.
After due compliance, the resolution plan will be placed before the CoC for final voting, Pyasi added.
Established in 2012 by Shripal Morakhia, Smaaash is a sports entertainment company specializing in sports simulation and proprietary gamification technologies. Its offerings include twilight bowling zones, motor racing, bike racing, and go-karting. It has 30 centres across India including Mumbai, Pune, Delhi-NCR, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Mangalore, Kanpur, Bhubaneshwar and Raipur. Morakhia had earlier said in an interview that he had made substantial efforts to revive the company.
Email queries sent to Amin and a Nazara spokesperson did not elicit any response.
Smaaash was admitted by NCLT in May 2022 following a default of over ₹292 crore to Edelweiss