Billionaire separation costs Raymond Group Rs 1500 cr

By Alex Gabriel Simon for Bloomberg

Raymond Ltd., one of the world’s biggest producers of suit fabric, fell for the seventh day in Mumbai as the acrimonious separation between its billionaire Chairman Gautam Singhania and his wife sparked uncertainty among investors.

The stock has tumbled 12 per cent since Nov. 13 when Singhania announced separation from Nawaz Singhania, his wife of 32 years and a Raymond board member, erasing more than Rs 1500 crores ($180 million) in market value. The shares fell as much 4.4 per cent on Wednesday, set for the biggest drop since Oct. 25.

The Economic Times reported late Monday citing people in the know that Nawaz has sought 75 per cent of Singhania’s Rs 11,668 crore ($1.4 billion) fortune as part of a settlement. A representative for the Raymond Group didn’t immediately respond to an e-mail seeking comment.

“Uncertainty around the separation is weighing on the stock. Nobody knows what kind of impact it will have on the company,” said Varun Singh, an analyst at ICICI Securities Ltd. “Since the wife is a board member, this has become a corporate governance issue.”

Singh initiated coverage on the stock with a hold recommendation on Nov. 20. The company has seven buy and no sell ratings, data compiled by Bloomberg show.