Lenders relieved as Vodafone Idea repays bondholders Rs 1,500 cr on time

Firm is now in the process of extinguishing bonds with the depositories; Next tranche of forex bonds worth Rs 1,055 cr are maturing on Dec 31, and another Indian currency bond matures Jan 4

In a big relief to the lenders, Vodafone Idea, a joint venture between Vodafone PLC and Aditya Birla Group, has paid its bond holders on time on Monday thus averting any financial default.

As per a banker, the company paid its principal worth Rs 1,500 crore and interest of Rs 114 crore on the 7.57 per cent Unsecured Redeemable Non-Convertible Debentures. The company is now in the process of extinguishing the bonds with the depositories.

The next tranche of bonds in foreign currency worth Rs 1,055 crore are maturing on December 31st and another Indian currency bond is maturing on January 4th, as per statistics collated by Bloomberg.

The repayment of debt was a big overhang over the company’s future. Bankers said with the company repaying its lenders in time, it has come as a big relief for the investors.

The company has to pay Rs 7,000 crore to its bondholders beginning December 13th till March next year and plans to use its own cash flows and bank funds to repay its bond holders.

In September, Vodafone Idea paid an additional one percent coupon to the debenture holders on account of a credit deterioration event effective from November 22, 2019.