Zee-Sony Merger: Zee Dismisses Report, Says Committed To Merger; Shares Off Day's Low

Zee Entertainment Enterprises on January 9 denied media reports of Sony calling off the mega $10 billion merger with the company.

In a regulatory filing, Zee said, “Company is committed to the merger with Sony and is continuing to work towards a successful closure of the proposed merger.”

The development comes after Bloomberg reported that the Sony Group is planning to cancel the deal with Zee Entertainment due to a brewing conflict over whether its chief executive officer Punit Goenka should lead the merged entity.

Calling the report “baseless and factually incorrect,” Zee also stated the company has always complied with its obligations under the SEBI Regulations, 2015 and “will continue to make disclosures in accordance with the same.”

Post the news report, shares of Zee Entertainment crashed 10 percent to Rs 249 per share on January 9 during opening hours.

In August 2023, market regulator SEBI had barred both Subhash Chandra and Punit Goenka from holding key managerial positions at Zee Entertainment till they completed their probe over the next eight months.

However, the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) overturned SEBI’s ban, which led to Punit Goenka returning as MD & CEO of Zee Entertainment on October 30, 2023.

Shares of Zee Entertainment are trading 10 per cent lower at Rs 251.95. The stock has remained in the Rs 180 – Rs 300 range over the last 12 months as uncertainty over the merger continued to linger over various issues.

Earlier this morning, 1.35 crore shares of Zee Entertainment or 1.4 per cent equity of the company worth Rs 340.1 crore, exchanged hands in multiple block deals. Buyers and sellers in the transaction remain unclear.

Shares of Zee Entertainment were off day’s low, trading 3 per cent down at Rs 267 per share on January 9 intra-day deals after the company dismissed reports of Sony’s plan on cancelling merger deals.