As Amazon Wins Order To Stall Deal, Reliance Retail and Future Group Push Back

Reliance Retail has said it “intends to enforce its rights” after US-based e-ecommerce major Amazon.com won a temporary order against its Rs 24,713 crore deal with Future Group. An arbitration court in Singapore on Sunday had restrained Future Retail from selling assets to Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Limited. Reliance Retail said "it intends to enforce its rights and complete the transaction as per its agreement with the Future Group without any delay." The Kishore Biyani-owned Future Retail said "actions taken by Future Retail Limited (FRL) / its board cannot be held back in arbitration proceedings initiated under an agreement to which FRL is not a party."

Passing an interim award in favour of Amazon, VK Rajah had asked the Future group to put the deal on hold and said that the deal cannot go through until it finally decides the matter, sources with direct knowledge of the development had said earlier.

Reliance Industries' retail arm, Reliance Retail Ventures Limited (RRVL), said it intends to complete the transaction with Future group without any delay. "RRVL has entered into the transaction for acquisition of assets and business of Future Retail Limited under proper legal advice and the rights and obligations are fully enforceable under Indian Law. RRVL intends to enforce its rights and complete the transaction in terms of the scheme and agreement with Future group without any delay, Reliance Retail said in a statement.

Future Retail Limited (FRL) said it is examining the order and also clarified that it is not a party to the agreement under which Amazon has invoked arbitration proceedings. "FRL has been legally advised that actions taken by the FRL / its board, which are in full compliance of the relevant agreements and eminently in the interest of all stakeholders cannot be held back in arbitration proceedings initiated under an agreement to which FRL is not a party," Future Retail Limited said in a statement.

The indebted Kishore Biyani group company had signed a pact to sell its retail, wholesale, logistics and warehousing units to billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries, through its subsidiary Reliance Retail Ventures.

Amazon last year bought a 49 per cent stake in one of Future's unlisted firms, Future Coupons, with the right to buy into Future Retail for a period ranging from three years to 10 years. Future Coupons owns a 7.3 per cent stake in Future Retail.