Future and Amazon continue letter fight; write to SEBI over Future-Reliance deal

New Delhi: Continuing their letter fight, Amazon and Future Group have written to market regulator SEBI with contrasting requests over a Rs 24,713 crore buyout of assets of India's second-largest retailer.

Future Group has requested SEBI to expedite the review of the proposed deal and issue a no-objection certificate, while Amazon has urged that the review of the "impugned transaction" be suspended.

Amazon had dragged Future Group to arbitration at Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) after an indebted Kishore Biyani group firm signed a pact to sell retail, wholesale, logistics and warehousing units to billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance in August this year.

Future Group firm Future Retail Ltd (FRL) approached the Delhi High Court, which earlier this month upheld Amazon's right to make representations to statutory authorities against the Future Group-Reliance Retail deal.

However, the court also made several observations indicating that Amazon's attempt to control FRL through a conflation of agreements it has with an unlisted unit of the Indian company will be violative of the FEMA FDI rules.

The court had also given a go-ahead to the regulatory authorities to decide about the deal in accordance with the rules and regulations.

In its letter, dated December 23, FRL requested SEBI to decide over the NOC (No Objection Certificate) required for the sale of its retail and other businesses "as soon as possible" as any delay would cause loss to the company, its stakeholders and investors.

"In view of the judgment of the Delhi High Court, it is respectfully prayed that SEBI reviews the application submitted for its NOC/ observations on the scheme to the stock exchanges as soon as possible as any further delay on this count would cause irreparable loss not only to FRL and its stakeholders, including lakhs of small investors, but also to other entities and their respective stakeholders and investors, who are involved in the scheme," it said.

The SEBI has to issue an NOC after reviewing the scheme of merger of FRL along with other Future Group companies with RIL's Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd and Reliance Retail Fashion Lifestyle Ltd.