U Gro redeems NCDs worth Rs 50 Cr issued to Sachin Bansal-led CRIDS

Amidst the ongoing liquidity crunch in the market, BSE-listed small business lending platform U Gro Capital has paid back Rs 50 crore debt to a company owned by Sachin Bansal before the maturity date. 

With a face value of Rs 10 lakh each, the company had issued non-convertible debentures (NCDs) to Chaitanya Rural Intermediation Development Services (CRIDS) which were to mature on May 3. However, U Gro has managed to redeem the NCDs almost one  month before the maturity date. 

The debenture holder of CRIDS and the debenture trustee Beacon Trusteeship had requested for the early redemption, said a market report. For the uninitiated, Bansal was appointed  as the CEO of CRIDS after he made a Rs 740 crore investment in the NBFC in September.

The development comes at a time when the economy has been hit hard and every businessman is preserving cash given the massive disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. While the market is facing a liquidity crunch and NBFCs are going through a liquidity crisis, U Gro honoring the liability commitments before the due date highlights the company’s actively securitized portfolios and conservative asset liability mismatch policy. 

U Gro had issued these debentures in October last year. Bansal had led the funding round worth Rs 75 crore in U Gro by investing Rs 50 crore. As per the stock filing by UGro, it looks like Bansal had invested the aforementioned sum via CRID, not in his personal capacity.

We have sent queries to U Gro. The post will be updated as and when it responds.

Founded by financial services professional Shachindra Nath in January 2019, U Gro has received a long-term rating of 'A' with a stable outlook and a short-term rating of 'A1' by Acuité within six months of starting its commercial operations. 

Following his exit from Flipkart, Sachin Bansal has been betting most of his fortune on Navi Technologies. Earlier this month, he infused over Rs 3000 crore in his Bengaluru-based venture and recently was appointed as the managing director of the company. 

Entrackr has exclusively reported about both the developments. 

Four months back, the co-founder of Flipkart had stepped down as an independent director of Ujjivan Small Finance Bank citing the interest of propriety and corporate governance. Navi, owned and controlled by Bansal, has applied to the Reserve Bank of India for a universal banking license.