Altico Capital India defaults on Mashreq interest payment

Mumbai: Another shadow financier in India has defaulted on a debt repayment, signalling the nation’s yearlong credit crisis is far from abating.

Altico Capital India Ltd, a non-banking finance company that focuses on lending to the real-estate sector, didn’t pay Rs199.7 million (Dh10.29 million, $2.8 million) of interest on borrowings from Dubai-based Mashreqbank PSC, Altico said in an exchange filing on Thursday.

The company’s failure to repay “may result in an acceleration of interest repayment, redemption obligations in respect of non-convertible debt securities issued by us and may trigger a default in their timely repayments,” according to Altico’s statement. “We are evaluating options for resolving the liquidity crisis and will be engaging in discussions with various stakeholders for the same.”

Altico’s default puts a spotlight on India’s property sector, which has been one of the main recipients of funding from shadow lenders, who are struggling to survive a funding crunch. Moody’s Investors Service said earlier this month that a pullback in lending by non-bank lenders against property may result in defaults at small- and medium-sized enterprises.

India’s year-old credit woes began after the shock default by the IL&FS Group in 2018, and many mortgage lenders are struggling to roll over debt. Altico defaulted on September 12 on a six-year loan.

A spokeswoman for Altico wasn’t immediately able to comment and said the company may update later Friday. Altico’s shareholders include Clearwater Capital Partners, Abu Dhabi Investment Council and Varde Partners, according to Altico’s website.

India Ratings downgraded the financier’s debt to A+ from AA- on September 3, with a negative outlook. That same day, Altico’s Chairman Naina Lal Kidwai stepped down, Altico said in a separate statement. The company has 43.62 billion rupees of loans outstanding from banks and financial institutions as of September 12, according to its latest filing.