Indemnification Issues In Private Equity Exits

The period from 2006 to 2011 witnessed a significant inflow of private equity investment into India, making it the second most favoured investment destination after China. However, the subsequent decline in capital markets had led to a shift in exits from public offerings to other exit routes such as third party sales which are beset with its own set of challenges, especially in light of the uncertainty around treatment of withholding tax brought about by the Vodafone case. There were several exit related deals that hit a dead end during this period after long drawn negotiations due to differences between parties in arriving at the manner of dealing with withholding tax and related mitigating factors.