Cash-strapped IL&FS group selling luxury cars, office furniture to raise funds

New Delhi: Debt-laden IL&FS group firms are selling high-end cars, office furniture, electrical appliances and other assets in a bid to raise funds. The Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services (IL&FS) and its various group firms have invited bids to sell 36 luxury cars, including brands like Audi, BMW, Jaguar, Mercedes Benz, Land Rover, Honda, Toyota and Skoda. [caption id=“attachment_5251861” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Reuters.[/caption] IL&FS has set a base price of a little less than Rs 9 crore for these vehicles. In a separate bid document, IL&FS invited bids for lump sum sale of used furniture and white goods on ‘as is where is’ basis at its properties in Mumbai and Kolkata. The group is facing a serious liquidity crisis and has defaulted on various debt repayments since August 27. The IL&FS group sits on a debt pile of over Rs 90,000 crore. The government had superseded the board of IL&FS and brought in seasoned banker Uday Kotak to steer the group out of its present crisis. State-run LIC is the largest shareholder owning a fourth of the firm’s equity, while other shareholders include Orix Corporation of Japan, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Central Bank of India, and SBI. Over the years, the company has invested over Rs 1,89,000 crore in infrastructure projects, primarily in surface transport, energy and urban infrastructure.