IL&FS group selling cars, furniture, electrical appliances to raise funds

Debt-laden Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services (IL&FS) group firms are selling high-end cars, office furniture, electrical appliances and other assets in a bid to raise funds.

The IL&FS and its various group firms have invited bids to sell 36 luxury cars, including brands like Audi, BMW, Jaguar, Mercedes Benz, Land Rover, Honda, Toyota, and Skoda.

IL&FS has set a base price of a little less than Rs 90 million for these vehicles.

In a separate bid document, IL&FS invited bids for lump sum sale of used furniture and white goods on 'as is where is' basis at its properties in Mumbai and Kolkata. 

The group is facing a serious liquidity crisis and has defaulted on various debt repayments since August 27. The IL&FS group sits on a debt pile of over Rs 900 billion.

The government had superseded the board of IL&FS and brought in seasoned banker Uday Kotak to steer the group out of its present crisis.

State-run LIC is the largest shareholder owning a fourth of the firm's equity, while other shareholders include Orix Corporation of Japan, Abu Dhabi Invest­ment Authority, Central Bank of India, and SBI.

Over the years, the company has invested over Rs 1,890 billion in infrastructure projects, primarily in surface transport, energy and urban infrastructure.