Tag: Banking and Finance

redevelopment project - essential checks

Essential Checks Before Buying a New Flat in a Redevelopment Project

Insights | March 4, 2026 | Practice Area: , ,

Given the significant rise in redevelopment activity across Mumbai, this note examines the critical legal, regulatory, and commercial checks that buyers, investors, and financial institutions must undertake before committing to a unit in a redevelopment project. It highlights key considerations under applicable laws such as the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 and the Maharashtra Ownership Flats Act, 1963, along with practical due diligence measures relating to title, statutory approvals, society consent, and development agreements.

External Commercial Borrowings framework

Liberalizing India’s External Commercial Borrowings Framework: Key Changes Under the 2026 Amendments

Insights | February 22, 2026 | Practice Area: , , , , ,

The Reserve Bank of India (“RBI”) has made significant changes to the external commercial borrowings (“ECB”) regulations through the issuance of the Foreign Exchange Management (Borrowing and Lending) (First Amendment) Regulations, 2026 (“Amended Regulations”) on February 16, 2026, which amend the Foreign Exchange Management (Borrowing and Lending) Regulations, 2018 (“PrincipalRegulation”).
The Amended Regulations have made substantial changes to the eligible borrowers, recognized lenders, applicable end uses, minimum average maturity requirements and pricing norms as well as to other key issues. Collectively, these changes liberalize the entire ECB framework, making it more business– friendly for Indian entities and providing an opportunity to a wider pool of overseas creditors to approach Indian borrowers in a regulated manner. This note analyzes the key changes under the Amended Regulations.

Acquisition finance by banks in India

Acquisition Finance by Banks in India

Insights | February 20, 2026 | Practice Area: , , , , ,

The Reserve Bank of India has introduced amendment directions to the Reserve Bank of India (Commercial Banks – Credit Facilities) Directions, 2025 and the Reserve Bank of India (Commercial Banks – Concentration Risk Management) Directions, 2025 (“Amendment Directions”), to permit banks to extend credit facilities for equity acquisitions in India. This note examines the regulatory framework under the Amendment Directions and explores the key parameters governing acquisition financing by Indian banks.

Data center investments in India

Data Centers as a Critical Asset Class: Assessing Power, Cooling, Land-Use, Interconnectivity, and Financing Models

Insights | February 10, 2026 | Practice Area: , , , , , , ,

Data centers constitute a critical, distinct infrastructure asset class offering stable, long-term returns comparable to regulated utilities. Realizing scalable value requires legal structuring across five interdependent dimensions: reliable, high-capacity power; efficient cooling technologies; complex land-use entitlements; interconnectivity density; and specialized financing frameworks linked to performance and ESG compliance.

foreign exchange management regulations

Foreign Exchange Management (Guarantees) Regulations, 2026: Towards a Principle-based Approach for Cross Border Guarantees

Uncategorized | February 9, 2026 | Practice Area:

Guarantees are one of the cornerstones of any financing transaction. With India’s credit markets increasingly oriented towards cross border transactions, an overhaul of the two-decade old Foreign Exchange Management (Guarantees) Regulations, 2000 (“2000 Regulations”) was long overdue. In an effort to rationalize and streamline the regulatory framework for cross border guarantees, the Reserve Bank of India (“RBI”), on January 06, 2026, notified the Foreign Exchange Management (Guarantees) Regulations, 2026 (“2026 Regulations”), which replace the 2000 Regulations. Additionally, the RBI has made consequential amendments to the guarantee-related provisions in various other master directions to remove inconsistencies and overlaps in the regulatory framework.
In contrast to the transaction-based approach for permissible cross border guarantees under the 2000 Regulations, the 2026 Regulations adopt a principle-based approach that permit cross border guarantees if certain stipulated conditions are satisfied. As a consequence, the 2026 Regulations expand the scope of permissible cross border guarantees under the automatic route, albeit with tightened reporting requirements.
This note highlights and decodes the key features of the 2026 Regulations.

co-lending arrangements

Co-Lending Arrangements: Collaborative Attempts to Bridge the Credit Gap

Insights | January 27, 2026 | Practice Area: ,

The Reserve Bank of India has issued an updated regulatory framework for co-lending arrangements between regulated entities (“REs”), which came into effect on January 1, 2026. The revised co-lending framework, which forms part of theReserve Bank of India (Commercial Banks – Transfer and Distribution of Credit Risk) Directions, 2025, Reserve Bank of India (All India Financial Institutions – Transfer and Distribution of Credit Risk) Directions, 2025 and Reserve Bank of India (Non-Banking Financial Companies – Transfer and Distribution of Credit Risk) Directions, 2025, each dated November 28, 2025 (collectively “2025 Directions”), significantly expands the scope of co-lending arrangements beyond priority sector lendingand to partnerships between all REs rather than only between banks and non-banking financial companies. The 2025 Directions also introduce critical operational requirements to co-lending arrangements, including enhanced disclosures, a blended interest rate, a minimum retention share of 10%(Ten per cent)for each co-lending partner, synchronized asset classification norms and an enabling provision for default loss guarantees by the originating RE. This note analyzes the key features of the regulatory framework for co-lending as contained in the 2025 Directions.

MahaRERA order

MahaRERA Issues Key Circular on Execution of Deeds of Cancellation

Legal Updates | January 5, 2026 | Practice Area: , ,

Defaults by allottees in making timely payments continue to pose serious challenges for real estate promoters, often resulting in stalled inventory, disrupted cash flows, and project-level financial stress. While the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 permits cancellation of allotments in accordance with the agreement for sale, the absence of a clear statutory mechanism for giving effect to such cancellation—particularly where allottees refuse to cooperate—has led to prolonged deadlocks. Addressing this long-standing procedural gap, the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (“MahaRERA”) has now issued a significant circular prescribing a standard operating procedure for execution and registration of deeds of cancellation. This note examines the background to the Circular, the judicial developments that prompted it, and its practical implications for promoters, allottees, and registering authorities.

IBC Bill, 2025

IBC (Amendment) Bill, 2025: Creditor-Initiated Insolvency Resolution Process

Insights | November 28, 2025 | Practice Area: , ,

One of the innovations proposed in the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Bill, 2025 (the “Bill”) is a new resolution framework that is intended to serve as an alternative to the conventional corporate insolvency resolution process (“CIRP”) under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016. Termed as the creditor-initiated insolvency resolution process (“CIIRP”), this process is designed as a largely out-of-court mechanism, but with the National Company Law Tribunal playing a supervisory role at key stages, including in case of a dispute, for grant of a moratorium and approval of a resolution plan. Another distinguishing feature of the CIIRP is that the corporate debtor continues to remain in control of the business (subject to certain checks and balances), in contrast to the CIRP where control is ceded to the resolution professional. This note analyzes the CIIRP framework as proposed in the Bill. For our analysis of other provisions of the Bill, please refer to our note here.

AI framework in the Indian financial sector

A Framework for Using AI in the Indian Financial Sector

Insights | September 23, 2025 | Practice Area: , , ,

On August 13, 2025, a committee constituted by the Reserve Bank of India (“RBI”) released its report with respect to a proposed framework for the responsible and ethical enablement (FREE) of artificial intelligence (AI) models in the Indian financial sector (such report, “FREE AI Report”), pursuant to principles of transparency, responsibility, and ethical deployment. The proposed framework may require RBI-regulated entities, including banks, to undertake significant investments and operational changes, including with respect to new governance structures and capacity-building measures.
In general, the FREE AI Report provides an overview of potential compliance obligations which might be imposed on RBI-regulated entities through future AI-related regulation. In that regard, the report proposes a sector-specific approach based on amendments to existing regulations and new AI-specific rules. Accordingly, a principles-based framework has been recommended for developing new regulations to guide the development, deployment, and governance of AI. The report also recommends including AI regulation within the scope of certain existing RBI master directions, including on cybersecurity, digital lending, customer service, fraud detection, information technology (“IT”) governance, and outsourcing of IT services.
This note provides a broad overview of the FREE AI Report and discusses the ways in which RBI-regulated entities could act upon its recommendations, including for the purpose of preparing for future AI regulation. AI governance requirements may involve the design and implementation of measures and strategies to ensure that AI models deployed in the financial sector are safe, reliable, and trustworthy, including for enhancing customer confidence and trust, and facilitating greater integration of AI models in finance.
 

Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Bill, 2025

Insights | September 15, 2025 | Practice Area: , ,

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Bill, 2025 (“Bill”) proposes the single biggest overhaul to the existing insolvency framework in India since the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (“Code”) came into effect in December 2016. The Bill attempts to address various challenges that have arisen with the Code’s implementation and to clarify ambiguities and unintended consequences that have resulted from certain judicial decisions. These changes include amendments to streamline the corporate insolvency resolution process, changes to provide for supervision of the liquidation process by the committee of creditors, clarifications on treatment of security interests in liquidation and changes to the framework for preferential, undervalued, fraudulent, and extortionate credit transactions. In addition, the Bill introduces new concepts such as the creditor-initiated insolvency resolution process, which provides an alternative process to the corporate insolvency resolution process under the Code and enabling provisions for the Government to frame rules on group insolvency and cross border insolvency. These proposed amendments collectively aim to restore the Code’s core principles of clarity, speed, and commercial certainty, while adapting to the evolving requirements of creditors, insolvency professionals, and the broader financial ecosystem. The Bill, which was introduced in the Lok Sabha on August 12, 2025, has now been referred to a select committee of the Parliament for its consideration.
This note decodes the key amendments proposed by the Bill.