The assets of the billionaire Mistry family are about to change hands. Cyrus Mistry passed away in September last year. Sources have revealed that now his assets may soon be divided between his wife Rohika and sons – Firoz and Jahan.
The restructuring will also include a 9.2 per cent stake in Tata Sons, currently held by Cyrus Mistry and linked to his investment company Cyrus Investments.
An official privy to the development said the asset restructuring is being done under the guidance of Cyrus’ elder brother Shapoor Mistry with the help of family lawyers and auditors. The official said, “Shapoor is making sure that everyone in the Cyrus family feels comfortable and compatible with the new structure and that no one has any complaints.”
An email message sent to the Mistry family did not elicit any response.
According to Bloomberg estimates, the combined net worth of the Mistry family is estimated at $27.3 billion, including their 18.4 percent stake in Tata Sons.
Pallonji Mistry passed away in June last year. He divided his wealth equally between his two sons – Shapoor and Cyrus – about a decade ago.
Sources say that the family was also planning to restructure the family business to get rid of any kind of complicated and challenging structure. Construction giant Shapoorji Pallonji & Co (SPCPL) paid off a debt of Rs 11,000 crore by selling its stake in Eureka Forbes, Sterling & Wilson Renewable Energy, and SP Jammu Udhampar Highway.
The group proposed to simplify its business structure to operate SPCPL as a construction company like L&T, while the holding company would operate other units. Over the next one year, the restructuring will help the flagship company focus on business and also help reduce the group’s debt.
An official familiar with the development said the plan is to wind up the merger of several smaller companies owned by SPCPA in an effort to shed stake in non-essential businesses and clean up the holding structure.
Many of the group’s business subsidiaries are under SPCPL as joint ventures and have good market value.
The Mistry family has also held talks with bankers to settle their dispute with the Tata group. The controversy deepened in October 2016 after Cyrus was removed as the chairman of the Tata group by the Tata Sons board.
