Buzz: E-factor in UP polls; money woes for tycoon | Economic Times

ET’s weekly roundup of the wackiest whispers and murmurs in corporate corridors & policy parlours:Price of KnowledgeBroken pledges, bungled finances and debt woes have plagued this engineering company, ever since it listed two years back. But when a little bird told us about the 10-digit severance package of a senior executive, we were left wondering if controversial calls have become commonplace for this group. The staggering number, just about Rs 150 crore short of the quarterly loss, seems unbelievable considering it might soon become public information, but our deep throat has been insistent. The payout is a combination of cash and stocks. Bizarrely enough, the executive is lingering on in a non-executive capacity to oversee strategy and org structures as well as leadership planning! Remember the hullabaloo over the exit package of a former CFO at a tech giant that surfaced in 2016, but even that was a fraction of the amount in this case. Is this a case of knowing too much or making hay while the sun shines?Loaded StatementsDuring the recent tribunal hearing of a highprofile matter involving a marquee PE investor, a staid mortgage firm and a public sector lender, the regulator’s counsel had a coughing fit while putting forth his arguments. The lawyer apologised and said he’d tested positive for Covid and was on medication. The presiding officer’s next comment took everyone aback — words to the effect that if not for Covid, he would have said the lawyer was finding it difficult to swallow his own arguments. Most folks would tend to think that such jokes are avoidable in a public forum. But considering it’s known for reversing several orders, many are now wondering how the case will go down.Sarkar’s New MixologistEthanol makers are particularly hopeful, albeit in private, that they may soon see acche din heading their way. Their hopes are pinned on the fact that the new incumbent in Petroleum Bhavan has been India’s ambassador to Brazil, years before he got into politics. Mixing petrol in the politics of poll-bound Uttar Pradesh is a tantalising prospect, for it’s directly linked to the prosperity of sugarcane growers. A hyper policy drive may even help to split the protesting farmer vote bank that thus far has been united against the agricultural laws. While oil and water may not quite mix, a blended-fuel push could just be the key to Lucknow.Key Man RiskSeveral of our financial and corporate A-listers drank his vintage champagne, crooned with Tina Turner at his beach bash before a masterclass on conscious capitalism by former President Bill Clinton. They were all seduced by the promise of doing good while delivering superlative returns through his $14 billion PE vehicle that invested in Asia, Africa and other emerging countries. Now as a tell-all biography has hit the shelves, the hotshots are eager to distance themselves from Abraaj and its Pakistani founder Arif Naqvi, accused of money laundering and pocketing $780 million from the very funds he was supposed to have been managing. Phone calls by spin doctors representing some of these honchos toward building a counter narrative have already begun. Whatever happened in Dubai, clearly does not stay in Dubai.Leaving PugmarksEven if the original Indophile partner, the original Big Bull for our startups, moved on two years back, the roaring success of this global VC fund still inspires awe among many. With their investments reaching a frenzied pace, even sharp-elbowed peers are jostling to invite them as coinvestors in portfolio companies, torpedoing even signed term sheets just to ride on the positive rub-off. Recently, when word got out that these Valley mavericks were primed to put funds into a fledgling ed-tech venture, some of their panic-stricken pals from another fund called to persuade them to drop that idea and back their venture instead. Last heard, they had succeeded, leaving the young firm in the lurch.A New CoalitionIn these sobering times, this grand desi gen next wedding is set to brighten spirits and cement ties between one of India’s most influential political dynasties and a realty tycoon from down south. Our friends tell us the groom, one of the earliest champions of bitcoin and shared office spaces in the country, and his bride, niece of a shorttempered deputy CM, are not keen on a big fat shindig. They want an intimate affair with 300 close relatives and friends at a farmhouse.Small PictureOnce upon a time he lorded over a global textile and retail empire, schmoozing with the silver screen’s famous angry young men, many of whom were brand ambassadors and pampered by the finest Savile Row scissor hands. But those heady days seem distant with one business floundering after another. The tech ventures of the late ’90s and the premium real estate built on the family’s once-sprawling mill lands have come undone. The shrinking clout and bank balance coupled with snowballing allegations of fraud and misappropriation even forced him to move out of his lavish Malabar Hill address to a smaller Cuffe Parade pad. Now we hear the family’s trophy collection of Bombay Progressives is changing hands in a private distress sale. Fellow buffs are perplexed why a large-scale global auction was not considered, especially when just last week an Amrita Sher-Gil fetched a dizzying Rs 38 crore. But this was a family affair — his billionaire brother-in-law sensed a great bargain on Razas and Hussains. Guess Indian masters are still a great asset class even if one may not be an ardent patron of paintings.