Rare India Defaulter IL&FS Is Said to Be Delinquent on More Debt

(Bloomberg) -- The Indian infrastructure finance firm behind a rare default last month that is reverberating through the nation's credit markets is delinquent on more borrowings, people familiar with the matter said.

Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services Ltd., which helped fund India's longest tunnel, is in default on 3 billion rupees ($41 million) of short-term borrowings taken through so-called inter-corporate deposits from Small Industries Development Bank of India, the people said. Government-backed SIDBI has sought a repayment plan, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the details are private.

The mounting troubles come after IL&FS missed payment on commercial paper last month in a rare development for India's short-term debt market, fanning concerns among investors in the money-market funds that hold such securities. The Reserve Bank of India has initiated a special audit of the firm, BloombergQuint has reported.

Read about IL&FS being banned from the CP market for six months

IL&FS has another 1.5 billion rupee inter-corporate deposit payment due on Sept. 14, according to the people. SIDBI has asked IL&FS to submit a plan within 10 days to repay the 3 billion rupee defaulted portion plus the 1.5 billion rupees coming due on Sept. 14, they said.

IL&FS had three tranches totaling 3.5 billion rupees of ICDs from SIDBI due on different days since August 27. It hasn't made full payment on any of those tranches, and has only paid 500 million rupees toward the total, leaving 3 billion rupees unpaid, the people said.

A SIDBI spokesman and an IL&FS spokeswoman declined to comment.

To contact the reporter on this story: Saloni Shukla in Mumbai at sshukla72@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Andrew Monahan at amonahan@bloomberg.net, Anto Antony

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