Mumbai: A US-based research firm has pegged Satyam's class action lawsuit liabilities at under $100 million.
According to the research firm, the amount of liability that the crisis-ridden Satyam, in the aftermath of the Rs 7,000-crore scam carried out by its former chief Ramalinga Raju, could be about $100 million.
The final liability figure will be keenly watched out by bidders in the fray to acquire a controlling stake in the company. BK Modi of Spice Group, one of the players in the Satyam race, recently said he expected liabilities for Satyam to be in the $400 million –$840 million range.
Sources said the Satyam board had contacted the US research firm to arrive at an estimated figure for liabilities that the company could face in the form of class action lawsuits in the US.
The firm, it is learnt, said there was a 90 per cent probability of the $100-million figure holding up and that it could be even less.
Usually, if a US court decides on who bears liabilities for the scam, the burden will fall on the company, its promoters and auditors. In case the promoters are proven to be bankrupt, the liabilities will have to be split between the company and the auditors.
There was no official confirmation of the $100 million figure though.
Impact on the Satyam bid
The information is important for Satyam as the bidding process gets underway. While the Satyam board may not be in a position to indemnify the bidder if the liabilities are $100 million--or any figure for that matter--but the information would may be given access to for those who qualify into the second round of bidding. The bidder may then make up its mind on whether the bid makes sense for it.
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