Reliance Group chairman Anil Ambani was a wealthy businessman and now he is not as a result of a "disastrous turn of events" in the telecom market in India, his lawyers told a UK court on Friday as they fought a bid by top Chinese banks to recover USD 680 million from the Indian businessman.
The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd Mumbai Branch, on behalf of itself, China Development Bank and Exim Bank of China, had sought summary judgment against Ambani over an alleged breach of a personal guarantee on a debt refinancing loan of around USD 925 million in February 2012.
Ambani, 60, denies providing authority for any such guarantee, resulting in the High Court action in the UK - the jurisdiction agreed to as part of the terms of the loan agreement.
At a hearing at the High Court of England and Wales in London to set the terms for the "conditional order" his legal team sought to establish that his net worth was zero once his liabilities were taken into account.
