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Showing posts from December, 2019

With their people at key posts, Tatas gain upper hand in AirAsia India

As AirAsia India struggles to find a firm foothold in the competitive domestic aviation space, Tatas are gaining upper hand in steering the no-frills carrier with executives from the conglomerate helming most senior positions, according to a source. A joint venture, majority-owned by Tatas, the airline's other shareholder is Malaysia's AirAsia group. The carrier, which commenced flights nearly six years ago, flew 8.78 lakh passengers garnering 6.8 per cent domestic market share in November. Over the years, there have been concerns raised in certain quarters about alleged role of the Malaysian partner having a bigger say in various matters related to AirAsia India. "Tata Sons has now an upper hand in the management of AirAsia India as against earlier when AirAsia group will call the shots in the matter of key appointments. At present, most of top positions at the carrier including the MD&CEO and CFO have people who have been closely associated with the Tata Group,"...

Year in review: After record 2018, M&A activity plunges to $52 bn in 2019

Merger and acquisitions seem to have become a big casualty of corporates' debt distress as India Inc learnt it hard way in 2019 that their first priority was to meet their loan repayment obligations and suitors from abroad also seemed reluctant in wooing distressed targets for any matchmaking. This has led to a mostly muted scene on India's corporate deal street this year, after a blockbuster 2018, while economic slowdown fears further came in the way for any significant merger and acquisition deals. But, experts are hopeful that the scenario might change in the new year, provided the economy rebounds from its lows. The domestic deal-making activities were also hit by weak corporate governance and a huge liquidity crunch in 2019, while the global deals were also hard to come by due to various factors including uncertainties caused by the USChina trade war, which left many investors in a wait-and-watch mode. According to leading law firm Baker McKenzie, the total M&A tally f...