An investment bank sought the help of Netrika Consulting to carry out a reputational due diligence on a group of companies in steel manufacturing, along with its three promoters. Their flagship company was listed in the stock markets.A detailed study on their business, political affiliations, criminal and bankruptcy checks had to be carried out.
There were a number of allegations against the promoters, which indicated that they were involved in various scams over the last few years. They were linked to mining barons from Karnataka, one of their factories in Pune was under scanner from the state pollution control board. The group’s excess leverage was making banks urge them to cut debt and their ratings had been downgraded. People internal and external to the company did not speak highly about the group. Their sources of funding were tracked and it was found that funds had been sourced from Dubai, London and some parts of US.
Since the investment bank wanted to take an informed decision, a detailed report was submitted with all the information. It helped the investment bank to evaluate whether they wanted to do business with the group.