(Bloomberg) -- Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. has agreed to repay dues owed to IndusInd Bank Ltd. as the company seeks to resolve insolvency proceedings initiated against it and inch closer to completing a merger with a Sony Group unit to create a $10 billion media giant, people familiar with the matter said.
The settling of dues of about 837 million rupees ($10 million) to the lender could happen as early as Friday and the Mumbai-based bank has agreed to withdraw its insolvency proceedings against the media company once the repayment is made, the people said, asking not to be named, as the information is not public.
IndusInd Bank had approached the bankruptcy court in February, seeking to start insolvency proceedings against Zee, a move which could have threatened the merger by stopping all transactions, including asset transfers. The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal, an appeals court, halted the insolvency proceedings against the media company last month.
Representatives for Zee Entertainment and IndusInd didn't respond to emails and phone calls seeking comments.
Shares of Zee Entertainment gained 9.3%, the biggest jump in almost a year at Mumbai trading close, after Bloomberg News reported its plans to repay dues. The company was the best performer on the S&P BSE 100 Index for the day.
A lawyer representing Zee told NCLAT last month that the Sony deal had received all necessary approvals but would be stalled because of the initiation of corporate insolvency proceedings. The merger, which has been in the making longer than the time lines originally indicated by Zee, has been approved by Zee's shareholders and India's antitrust regulator.
(Updates with share prices in the fifth paragraph)
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