Ahead of merger with Sony, Zee begins settlement talks with creditors to create $10 billion media giant

Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd has started settlement talks with its creditors to repay its debts. This would remove the last hurdle the entertainment giant has to complete its merger with the Sony group. This merger is expected to create a media giant worth $10 billion.

Zee has offered IDBI to repay a loan of about ₹ 1.49 billion in different tranches. IDBI is one of the creditors that moved the insolvency court against Zee. As per reports, the Indian television network is also in talks with Axis Bank Ltd. and JC Flowers & Co.’s asset reconstruction unit to settle dues worth ₹ 400 million each made to entities controlled by them.

Zee in a regulatory filing has said that it had repaid the dues of one of its creditors IndusInd bank. IndusInd bank had also objected to the merger of Zee and Sony. However, after this repayment of the dues the bank will withdraw its objections against the merger, said the filing.

As per Bloomberg, the repayments are crucial for the merger, which will create a media firm with the biggest viewership and pricing power in the country of more than 1.4 billion people. Sony Pictures Networks India Pvt. will own a little more than half the shares once the deal is completed and Zee’s founders will hold 3.99% while public shareholders will get the rest.

As per the exchange filings, Zee's biggest investor Atlanta-based Invesco Developing Markets Fund that held 18% shares during the time of announcement of the merger, exited its entire holdings as of last week. The sixteen-month-old merger agreement was approved in October.