BoB looks to sell Rs 2,700 crore of NPAs; taps ARCs, NBFCs

Synopsis

Bank of Baroda is selling a ₹2,776 crore portfolio of 41 stressed loans, including nine declared fraud accounts like Ushdev International and Nirmal Lifestyle. The sale, conducted on a cash basis with assets transferred "as is where is, without recourse," aims to clean the bank's books.

Mumbai: The Bank of Baroda has invited bids for ₹2,776 crore stressed loans, inviting asset reconstruction companies and NBFCs to bid for a portfolio of 41 accounts-nine of which have been declared fraud, including Ushdev International, Nirmal Lifestyle, Abhijeet Projects, and Pixion Media-as the state-owned lender cleans its books.

The portfolio spans power, infrastructure, real estate, textiles, automobiles, and media, with book dues as of March 31, 2026. The largest single exposure is Shirpur Power at ₹526.68 crore, followed by Ushdev International at ₹280.28 crore, Pixion Media at ₹154.68 crore, Abhijeet Projects at ₹150.18 crore, and Nirmal Lifestyle at ₹145.77 crore.

The top ten accounts-which also include SE TransStadia (₹127.09 crore), Seya Industries (₹126.03 crore), Pearl Vision (₹117.79 crore), Ranchi Expressways (₹110.34 crore), and Century Communication (₹106.19 crore)-account for over ₹1,900 crore of the total portfolio.

The full list of fraud-tagged accounts includes Torque Automotive, Pearl Vision, Century Communication, Shri Lal Mahal, and SRS Modern Sales. The bank has clarified that any transfer of these assets will have no bearing on ongoing criminal investigations by the CBI, police, or other law enforcement agencies. The sale will be conducted entirely on a cash basis, with assets transferred on an "as is where is, without recourse" basis-meaning all credit, operational, legal, and other risks pass to the buyer on completion. Bidders with any connection to the promoters, or guarantors of the stressed accounts, will be disqualified.

Two sets of accounts-the Ishwar Oil group and a cluster of three textile companies comprising Swift Fabrics, Uttam Finetex, and Nangalia Fabrics-have been grouped as pool accounts for evaluation.

Bank of Baroda will use the Swiss Challenge method to finalise the winning bid, under which the highest initial offer sets the base price and competing bidders must offer a minimum 5% mark-up to qualify as a challenger.

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