Book review: How Maruti Udyog came close to acquiring Hyundai in 1999

BVR Subbu, former president of Hyundai Motor India, recalls how Maruti Udyog came close to buying Hyundai in this excerpt from Santro: The Car That Built a Company

Not more than a handful of people realized just how serious the financial situation at HMI [Hyundai Motors India] continued to be even after the loans came through….The first year of commercial operations, FY 1999, ended with a loss of Rs 50.44 crore. Though the loss was much lower than budgeted, and the sales operations were run on a proverbial shoestring budget with not a single day of channel credit to support even the introductory phase — undoubtedly a first in Hyundai’s global experience — the simple fact was that there was little support that could be expected or received